International  Theological   Library 

THE 

CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 


BY 


ALFRED    ERNEST    GARVIE 

M.A.(Oxon.),  D.D.(GIas.) 

PRINCIPAL  OF  NEW  COLLEGE,   LONDON 


NEW    YORK 

CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S    SONS 

1921 


J%«  Jlights  of  TnmslaZtfm.  nmd  of  B^prodvetitm  cure  B^Rserve/t 


TO  THE   SACRED  MEMORY 

AND     BLESSED    PRESENCE 

OP 

A    WIFE    BELOVED 


PREFACE. 

Aggrieved  artists  have  said  that  art  critics  are  artists  who 
have  themselves  failed.  Preachers  may  cherish  a  similar 
suspicion  when  there  comes  to  them  a  book  on  preaching 
from  a  theological  college,  as  it  is  commonly  assumed  that, 
whatever  may  be  known  and  taught  within  its  walls,  the 
science  and  art  of  preaching  is  not.  Thirty-five  years  ago 
the  call  came  to  the  writer  to  abandon  the  work  on  which 
he  was  then  engaged  to  give  himself  to  the  preaching  of  the 
Gospel.  The  sense  of  that  call  has  never  failed ;  and 
although  God's  Providence  has  led  him  to  his  present  work 
as  a  teacher  of  preachers,  it  is  the  same  holy  task  in  which 
he  knows  himself  engaged.  Preaching,  as  much  as  when 
he  was  in  the  pastorate,  is  still  the  work  which  is  his  life's 
aim  and  joy.  The  writer  has  found  enough  acceptance 
and  appreciation  in  his  manifold  labours  throughout  the 
length  and  breadth  of  Great  Britain  to  encourage  him  in 
the  hope  that  he  may  be  able  to  expound  the  doctrine  as 
one  who  has  not  altogether  failed  in  the  practice.  The 
favourable  reception  accorded  to  his  previous  book,  A  Guide 
to  Preachers,  which  was  intended  for  lay  preachers,  but 
which  has  been  found  helpful  by  ministers  also,  further 
emboldens  him  to  essay  the  perilous  task.  This  he  can  at 
least  claim,  that  none  could  be  more  interested  in,  and 
devoted  to,  the  work  of  preaching  than  he  knows  himself 
to  be.  It  is  not  improbable  that  some  who  have  a  genius 
for  preaching  might  be  less  successful  in  dealing  with  the 
science  and  art  than  others  who,  lacking  that  supreme  gift, 


viii  rKKFACK 

b;vvo  ijivfii  num>  atiotit.ion  to  (ho  Ihoory  and  luothod.  Tim 
Nvritor  trusts  (hat  his  vohiiuo  will  at  lo;>st  show  that  ho  has 
not  s^vircd  hia  lahonrs  tH>  «lia(>h;irj»o  faithfully  tho  task 
undortakon. 

In  dooiding  on  tho  ])lan  of  tho  hook,  tho  writor  first 
aakod  hinisolf  the  question,  For  whoiu  should  ho  write,  for 
the  scholar  deliijhting  in  the  minutiae  of  tho  history  and 
tho  literalure  of  the  suhjeot,  or  for  the  minister  desiring  to 
he  helped  li>  make  the  host  of  his  eallinu;  as  a  preaeher  ? 
While  some  of  liis  interests  drew  him  to  the  first,  tho 
dominating  purpose  of  his  life  has  <lriven  him  to  tho 
soeoud.  Ho  helieves  that  in  this  way  he  ean  bo  most 
useful  to  the  larijest  number.  If  scholars  do  not  find  jis 
formidable  an  array  of  footnotes,  references,  and  lists  of 
books  as  has  been  otVerod  in  other  volumes  of  tho  series,  it 
is  hoped  that  the  omission  will  not  bo  put  down  to  ignor- 
ance or  incomp(Mence  on  the  part  of  the  writer,  but  to  his 
deliberate  intention  to  write  a  book  that  would  be  read 
from  cover  tt">  cover  by  preachers,  who  might  be  alarmed  by 
any  display  of  learning. 

It  is  this  ptirpose  which  explains  the  treatment  in  the 
first  division  of  the  history  of  preaching,  and  the  adoption 
of  the  thiixi  division.  Instead  of  attempting  an  exhaustive 
aecouut  of  the  life  and  work  of  the  great  preachers,  such  as 
histories  of  preaching  otVer,  ho  has  thought  it  more  in 
accord  with  his  ]nnpose  to  throw  into  prominence  the 
^  difterent  ty^xjs  of  preaching  in  t.he  past,  in  order  to  show 
the  large  place  filled,  and  the  great  part  played,  by  preach- 
ing in  the  l>ogress  of  the  Kingdom  of  God,  for  he  believes 
with  Paul  that  it  bjis  ever  been  "  God's  good  pleasure 
through  the  foolishness  of  the  preaching  to  save  them  that 
believe,"  ^  and  to  accomplish  His  purjwse  in  tlie  world. 
The    fact    that    the    Afastei^  in    other  religions  were    all 

'  1  Oo  1". 


/  i    I,}  n 


ii  tt 


preacbmrt,  tSb/nit  \ifi'^  iridl>:ij<-jiiifi,hhi  to  mfjral  and  religioua 
life  prea/jhiftg  ml  Tbijj  hhi\/mf^\  HurvHy  will,  it  i*  Loped, 
give  every  Qhriaibin  preaclier  a  higher  fiease  of  the  dignity, 
ble«&edrj.e*j«,  and  idHprmnHfAlity  <A  hS»  vooatioD. 

To  «ome  readere  the  third  division  may  seem  unneoee- 
Jiary,  but  the  writer  iotiuii,  when  the  uAnixUiT  of  a  church, 
tiiat  he  had  to  face  and  answer  for  hima/filf  ja«t  »uoh  qaje»- 
tion>.  a«  he  endeavours  to  deal  with.  He  de8ire«  to  haod 
over  to  otherK  ftome  of  the  results  of  his  own  ezperieikce. 
In  trttining  men  for  preaching,  Ixe  has  further  dijacovea-ed 
how  needful  jiist  such  simple,  pr^MCtical  oounftela  are, 
especially  for  men  at  the  l>€^iJiing  ol  their  ministry.  TTae 
present  situation  for  the  Christian  pulpit  presents  »o  many 
[perplexities  and  difficulties,  that  an  attempt  to  face  it 
frankly  and  fully  niay  prove  helpful  to  many.  A«  the 
preachier  may  invoke  God's  blessing  in  his  preaching  of  the 
''Gospel,  with  a  like  confidence  wotild  the  writer  ask  for 
God's  blessing  on  his  endeavour  to  help  and  encourage 
preachers  to  preach  l^etter. 

The  illustrations  of  the  history  in  quotations  from 
sermons  are  purposely  taken  frorji  popular  collectioiis,  as 
likely  to  he  more  accessible  to  those  for  whom  the  book  is 
written  than  if  taken  from  volume?-:  difficult  to  obtain ;  and 
for  permission  to  make  these  extracts  the  writer  is  much 
indebted  to  the  editoru  and  publishers  : 

The  Intematiorxal  Univeriiity  Society :  (J'tf/yriud  M<j^Ar- 

//i</>?«  of  EUjfl'OAWA. 

Funk     &     Wagnalls     Ooini/smy:    TU     Wc/rlda    Great 

Messrs.  Cassell  &  <'>j. :  77(>j  W/ranj  of  Eru/lvih  lyUera^ 
t'o/re  ("  Illustrations  of  English  iiellgion  ";. 

lAfsnerH  Sands  &  Go. :  (??•««<  French  tSerrruz-ra. 

In  dealifig  with  tlie  hisU^ry  of  preaching,  the  writer 
gratefully  a/;knowledges  his  great  indebte^lness  Uj  the  works 


X  PREFACE 

of  Hering,  Dargan,  Van  Oosterzee,  and  Ker.  Without 
their  assistance  the  book  could  not  have  been  written,  and 
to  their  works  he  would  refer  all  who  desire  to  become 
familiar  with  the  records  of  preachers  in  greater  detail  than 
the  scope  and  purpose  of  the  present  volume  allowed.  His 
own  independent  contribution  to  Homiletic^  he  has  ventured 
to  offer  in  the  second  and  third  divisions.  If  in  any  degree 
he  can  communicate  to  preachers  his  own  enthusiasm  for 
his  calling,  he  will  thankfully  acknowledge  that  he  has  not 
laboured  in  vain. 

The  volume  was  nearly  completed  when  the  great 
world-war  came  to  shake  so  many  things  that  can  be  shaken 
only  that  the  things  which  cannot  be  shaken  may  remain, 
and  its  publication  has  been  delayed  on  that  account.  It 
has  not  been  found  necessary  to  alter  much  that  had  been 
written,  as  the  Gospel  to  be  preached  remains ;  and  little 
had  been  written  about  the  purpose  and  the  method  of 
preaching  that  Gospel  which  appeared  to  need  revision  in 
the  light  of  the  new  day  dawning  upon  the  world  with  the 
conclusion  of  peace.  The  necessity  and  the  urgency  of  the 
preacher's  task  has  been  only  emphasised  by  the  tragedy  of 
human  sin  and  suffering  which  is  now  drawing  to  a  close  ; 
and  no  discovery  has  been  made  in  human  thought  and  life 
which  need  alter  the  conviction  that  the  Gospel  is  the 
power  and  the  wisdom  of  God  unto  the  salvation  of  all  that 
believe,  and  that  accordingly  there  is  no  worthier  calling 
for  any  man  than  to  be  a  Christian  preacher. 

ALFRED  E.  GARVIE. 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 


INTRODUCTION. 

PAOB 

I.  The  Importakce  of  Preaching     ....        1 

1.  Tlie  place  of  preaching  in  the  Church  of  Christ  .        1 

2.  The  modem  challenge  of  this  place       .  .  .2 

3.  Preaching  as  essential  and  necessary  as  worship  .        4 

4.  „  „        „  „  „  „  work    .  .        6 

5.  The  dependence  of  worship  and  work  on  preaching     .        7 

II.  The  Definition  of  Preaching      ....        8 

1.  "  Divine  truth  through  human  personality  for  eternal 

life" 8 

2.  The  truth  to  be  preached  ....        9 

3.  Preaching  of  narrower  scope       .  .  ,  .10 

4.  The  personality  preaching         .  .  .  .11 

5.  The  object  of  preaching,  faith,  duty,  hope         .  .      12 

III.  The  Characteristics  of  Christian  Preaching.  .      14 

1.  The  Christian  preacher  as  a  messenger  .  .  .14 

2.  The  interpretation  of  the  message  for  each  age .  ,       15 

3.  The  message  evangelical  .  .  .  ,  .16 

4.  „         „         experimental  .  .  •  .17 

5.  „         „         ethical  .  ,  ,  ,  .19 

6.  „         „         universal     .  •  ,  ,  .20 


PART  I. 
THE  HISTORY  OF  PREACHING. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

1.  The  study  of  the  subject  through  its  history     .  .    *  22 

2.  The  two  methods  of  treating  the  subject  ,  .       23 

3.  Subjects  omitted  .  .  .  ,  .23 


xu 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I. 

Jesus  Christ  the  Lord. 

PASK 

I,  Jesus  as  Teacher    .  .  .  .  ,  ,25 

1.  The  place  of  Jesus  in  Christianity         .  .  .25 

2.  The  importance  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  .  .       25 

3.  The  literary  sources :  Synoptic  and  Johannine  .      27 

4.  The  manner  of  Jesus'  teaching  .  .  .  ,28 

II.  The  Characteristics  of  His  Teaching    .  ,  ,28 

1.  Its  authoritativeness       .  .  .  ,  .29 

2.  Its  novelty — (1)  Originality,  (2)  continuity     .  .      30 

3.  Its  graciousness — (1)  Grace  as  the  content ;  (2)  but  con- 

joined with  severity    .  .  .  .  .31 

4.  Its  attractiveness — (1)  In   manner  and  method ;   (2) 

charm  allied  with  power  .  .  .  .32 

5.  Reasons  for  its  attractiveness — (1)  Occasional  but  not 

ephemeral ;  (2)  "  popular  intelligibility  and  impres- 
sive pregnancy "  .  .  .  ,  .34 

III.  The  Intellectual  Ability  op  the  Teaching     .  .      35 

1.  Pithy,  pointed,  clear,  and  forceful  sayings         .  .      36 

2.  Truth  presented  in  a  tale  or  picture      .  .  .37 

3.  The  two  kinds  of  parables  .  .  .  ,38 

4.  The  analogy  of  the  visible  and  its  expression    .  .      40 

5.  The   use   of   concrete    instances — (1)   The   maximum 

demand;  (2)  the  varying  applications  of  the  prin- 
ciple ;  (3)  avoidance  of  casuistry.  Conclusion — His 
continued  teaching     .  ,  .  ,  ,40 


CHAPTER  IL 

Apostles,  Prophets,  Teachers. 

I.  The  Ministry  of  the  Apostolic  Church 

1.  The  call  and  work  of  the  Twelve  and  the  Seventy 

2.  The  equipment  of  the  Twelve  and  the  Seventy 

3.  The  significance  of  the  passages  about  the  Church 

4.  The  promises  of  the  farewell  discourse 

5.  The  larger  company  of  the  disciples 

6.  The  meaning  of  the  term  apostle 

7.  The  gift  of  prophecy 

8.  The  manifold  charismata 

II.  The  Preaching  of  the  Apostolic  Age 

1.  The  times  and  places  of  preaching 

2.  The  contents  of  Peter's  preaching 

3.  „  M        „  Stephen's  preaching 


44 
44 
45 
45 
46 
47 
48 
49 
50 

51 
61 
63 
54 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS  xm 

PASS 

4.  The  contents  of  Paul's  preaching  .  ,  .54 

5.  The  indications  given  in  the  Epistles — (1)  Paul's  j  (2) 

the  Homilies     ,  .  ,  ,  .  .57 


CHAPTER  III. 
Apologists  and  Fathers. 

L  The  Gentile  Environment  op  the  Christian  Church      59 

1.  A  world  familiar  with  preaching  .  .  .69 

2.  The  current  methods  of  preaching         .  .  .61 

3.  The  influence  of  these  methods  on  the  Church — (1) 

Gradual  limitation  of  preaching  to  an  official  class  ; 

(2)  the  resemblances  between  preachers  and  sophists      63 

[1.  Preaching  in  the  Second  and  Third  Century  .      65 

1.  Preaching  as  a  part  of  public  worship    .  .  .65 

2.  The  oldest  Christian  homily  outside  of  New  Testa- 

ment   .  .  .  .  .  ,  .66 

3.  Hippolytus'  sermon,  In  Sanctam  Theophaniam  .  .      68 

4.  Justin  Martyr  as  a  preacher       .  .  .  ,69 

5.  The  preaching  of  Tertullian  and  Cyprian  .  ,      70 

6.  The  Homilies  of  Origen  .  .  .  .  .71 

III.  Preaching  in  the  Fourth  Century  in  the  East         .      72 

1.  The  general  character  of  the  preaching — (1)  The  peril 

of  seeking  popularity  ;  (2)  the  safeguard  against 
the  peril  in  the  close  connection  with  Scripture  ;  (3) 
the  more  definite  form  of  sermons  ;  (4)  the  influences 
of  theological  controversy       .  .  .  .72 

2.  Basil  the  Great  of  Csesarea — (1)  His  merits  as  a  preacher; 

(2)  example  of  his  preaching  .  .  .  .75 

3.  Gregory  Nazianzen — (1)  The  secret  of  his  success ;  (2) 

his  eulogy  of  Basil       .  .  .  .  .76 

4.  Gregory  of  Nyssa — (1)  His  inferiority  as  preacher ;  (2) 

example  of  his  preaching        .  .  ,  .78 

5.  John  Chrysostom — (1)  His  supreme  merits;  (2)  his 

homilies  and  sermons  ;  (3)  example  of  his  preaching  .       79 

rV".  Preaching  in  the  Fourth  and  the  Fifth  Century  in 

the  West      .  .  .  .  ,  .82 

1,  Ambrose — (1)  His  personality ;   (2)  Augustine's  testi- 

mony  .  .  .  .  .  .  .82 

2.  Augustine— (1)    His  historical   importance;    (2)    his 

qualities  as  a  preacher ;  (3)  his  sermons ;  (4)  his 
rhetorical  art ;  (5)  his  Doctrina  Christiana ;  (6) 
example  of  his  preaching        .  .  .  .83 


XIV  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

V.  Pekaohing  of  following  Centories  ,  .  .87 

1.  General  characteristics   .            ,  ,  .  .87 

2.  Preachers  in  the  West     .            .  ,  ,  .88 

3.  The  forms  of  the  sermons           .  ' .  .  .89 


CHAPTER  IV. 
Priest,  Monk,  and  Frla.r  :  Soholastio  and  Mystic. 

I.  Missionary  and  Vernacular  Preaching  .  .      90 

1.  Missionaries  in  Scotland — (1)  St.  Rule,   St.   Ninian, 

St.  Palladius,  St.  Patrick,  St.  Columba ;  (2)  Instruc- 
tiones  Sancti  Columbani  .  .  .  .90 

2.  Missionaries     to    Germany,    France,    England  —  (1) 

Sermons  of  St.  Boniface,  Eligius  ;    (2)  Augustine's 
mission  to  Anglo-Saxons ;  (3)  address  by  Lebuin  .      91 

3.  Preaching  within  the  monasteries — (1)  Collations ;  (2) 

sermons  of  the  Venerable  Bede  .  .  .96 

4.  Appointment    of    parochial    clergy  —  (1)     Need    of 

reform  ;  (2)  Charlemagne  as  reformer ;  (3)  Homi 
liarium ;  (4)  the  hold  of  tradition  and  the  growth 
of  superstition .  .  .  .  .  .96 

6.  The  unoriginal  and  parasitic  character  of  preaching    .      98 


II.  The  Improvement  in  Preaching  from  1200  onwards 

1.  The  conditions  of  the  improvement 

2.  Bernard  of  Clairvaux — (1)  His  general  characteristics 

(2)  the  contents  of  his  sermons ;   (3)  the   form  of 
hia  sermons  ;  (4)  example  of  his  preaching 

3.  The  Anglo-Saxon  homilies 

4.  The  preaching  of  the  monks  of  St.  Victor 

III.  The  Preaching  of  the  Friars     , 

1.  The  rise  of  the  friars 

2.  St.  Francis  of  Assist 

3.  The  Waldenses    . 

4.  St.  Dominic 

5.  Antony  of  Padua 

6.  Berthold  of  Regensburg 

7.  Works  on  preaching 

8.  Thomas  Aquinas 

9.  Blending  of  mysticism  and   scholasticism :   Bonaven 

tura 

10.  Speculative  mystics— (1)  Meister   Eckhart;  (2)  John 
Tauler ;  (3)  Henry  Suso 


99 
99 


100 
103 
105 

105 

105 
107 
108 
108 
110 
111 
112 
113 

114 

114 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS  xv 

PAOX 

IV.  The  Beginnings  of  Revolt  ....    116 

1.  John   Wyclif— (1)   Schoolman,    politician,    preacher, 

reformer  ;  (2)  translation  of  the  Bible,  and  employ- 
ment of  preachers;  (3)  his  sermons;  (4)  example 
of  his  preaching  .  .  .  .  .116 

2.  John  Huss  .  .  ...  •  .120 

3.  Savonarola — (1)  Home's  description  of  the  man ;  (2) 

George  Eliot's  description  of  his  preaching    .  .121 

4.  John  Gerson        ......     123 

5.  General  characteristics — (1)   Attention  to  homiletics ; 

(2)  four  kinds  of  preaching    ....    124 

CHAPTER  V. 

Reformers  and  Dogmatists. 

I.  The  Revival  op  Preaching  at  the  Reformation        .    127 

1.  Martin  Luther — (1)  His  preaching ;  (2)  his  exposition 

of  the  Holy  Scriptures  and  declaration  of  the  gospel ; 

(3)  his  views  on  preaching ;  (4)  example  of  his 
preaching         ......     127 

2.  Protestant  preaching  under  Luther's  influence  .  .  131 

3.  Some  notable  preachers  in  Lutheranism  .  .  132 

4.  Ulrich  Zwingli 133 

5.  John    Calvin— (1)    Theologian;     (2)    expositor;    (3) 

preacher ;  (4)  Home's  estimate         .  .  .133 

6.  John  Knox— (1)  The  effect  of  his  preaching ;  (2)  ex- 

ample of  his  preaching  ;  (3)  the  more  attractive  aspect     136 

7.  Hugh   Latimer — (1)  His  career  ;    (2)  example   of  his 

preaching         ......     139 

8.  Homiletics — (1)  Erasmus'  Ecclesiastes ;    (2)  Melanch- 

thon  and  Hyperius      .  .  .  .  .141 

II.  The  Decline  op  Preaching  in  Protestantism  .  .143 

1.  The  rapidity  of  the  decline         ....     143 

2.  The  characteristics  of  the  period  .  .  .     143 

3.  The  preaching  of  Lutheran  mysticism  .  •  .145 

CHAPTER  VL 

The  Anglican  and  the  Puritan,  the  Churchman 
AND  the  Nonconformist,  the  Evangelical  and 
the  Moderate. 

L  The  Anglican  Pulpit         .....    147 

1.  The  Reformation  in  the  Church  of  England     .  .     147 

\  2.  Grindal's  plea  for  freedom  in  preaching  ,  .     148 


XVI  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 


VAOB 

148 


3.  Richard  Hooker  as  typical  Anglican      .  , 

4.  Other  preachers — (1)  Bishop  Andrewes,  John  Donne, 

Joseph  Hall,  Jeremy  Taylor  ;  (2)  an  example         .     160 

II,  The  Puritan  and  Nonconformist  Pulpit  .  ,    152 

1.  The  manner  of  preaching  ....    162 

2.  Some  Puritan  preachers  at  Cambridge  .  .  ,     163 

3.  Henry  Smith       .  .  .  ,  .  .155 

4.  Thomas  Adams   .  ,  .  ,  ,  .156 

5.  Dr.  Thomas  Goodwin.     .....     157 

6.  John  Bunyan       ......     158 

7.  Richard  Baxter    ......     159 

8.  George  Fox  .  .  .  .  .  .160 

III.  Later  Preachers  of  Church  and  Nonconformity      .    161 

1.  John  Tillotson     .            .            ,  .  .  .161 

2.  Robert  South       .             .            .  .  .  ,162 

3.  The  Deistic  Controversy             .  ,  .  .163 

4.  Bishop  Butler      .             .            .  .  .  .164 

5.  Isaac  Watts  and  Philip  Doddridge  .  .  .166 

IV.  Evangelicals  and  Moderates  in  Scotland       .  .    167 

1.  The  Marroxo  of  Modern  Divinity  and  the  "  Marrow  men  " 

— (1)  The  book  itself ;  (2)  Thomas  Boston,  Ebenezer 
and  Ralph  Erskine  ;  (3)  Boston's  The  Fourfold  State  of 
Man;  {4)  Soliloquy  on  the  Art  of  Man-fishing  .  .     167 

2.  The    Moderates — (1)   Alexander  Carlyle ;    (2)  Hugh 

Blair    .  .  .  .  .  .  .169 

CHAPTER  VIL 

Orators  and  Courtiers. 

I.  The  Reformed  Pulpit  in  France  .  ,  .171 

1.  Characteristics  of  the  Reformed  pulpit  .  .  .     171 

2.  Some  Reformed  preachers             .  .  .  .172 

3.  Jacques  Saurin     .            .            .  .  .  .173 

II.  The  Roman  Catholic  Pulpit  in  France  .  .    174 

1.  Characteristics  of  the  Roman  Catholic  pulpit    .  .174 

2.  Individual  differences  of  the  preachers  .  .  .175 

3.  Jacques  Benigne  Bossuet — (1)  Factors  in  his  develop- 

ment ;  (2)  example  of  his  preaching  .  .  .176 

4.  Louis  de  Bourdaloue — (1)  His  excellences  ;  (2)  example 

of  his  preaching  .....     177 

5.  Jean    Baptiste    Massillon — (1)    His    career ;    (2)    his 

counsels  to  the  young  king  ;  (3)  hie  counsels  to  his 
clergy  ;  (4)  example  of  his  preaching  .  .     179 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 


xvu 


183 

185 


is: 


187 


192 
194 


6.  Frangois  de  Salignac  de  la  Mothe  Fenelon-(l)  His 

preaching  ;  (2)  his  Dialogues  and  Letter 

7.  Reaction  on  the  Reformed  pulpit 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Pietists,  Rationalists  and  Mediators. 

L  The  Pietists  .  .  •  •         .' ,  .      \ 

1.  Philipp  Jacob  Spener-(l)  His  historical  importance  , 
(2)  his  development  and  career;  (3)  his  Fia 
Desideria;  (4)  his  relation  to  Luther ;  (5)  his 
dependence  on  and  zeal  for  the  Bible  ;  (6)  his  form 
of  preaching  ;  (7)  an  outline  of  a  sermon       .       _     . 

2  August   Hermann    Francke-(l)  His   characteristics; 

(2)   the  influence  of  his  preaching ;   (3)  sketch  of 
sermon.  .•••** 

3  Reasons  for  the  failure  of  pietism  .  •  • 

4  Johann  Albrecht  Bengel-(l)  Character  of  his  preach- 

ing  ;  (2)  his  influence  :  Oetinger,  Hahn,  Stemhofer.     195 
6    Count  Nikolaus  Ludwig  von  Zinzendorft"  .  •     196 

6  Pietism  in  Elberfeld  and  Barmen-(l)  Gerhard  Ter- 
steegen;  (2)  Jung  Stilling,  Lavater,  Hamann, 
Claudius  ...••• 

198 

II.  The  Rationalists     .  .  •  •  't  -.      ' 

1.  The  transition  from  pietism  to  rationalism  :  Johann 

Lorenz  Mosheim  .  .  •  •  • 

2.  The    German     enlightenment— (1)    Thomasius ;    (2) 

Wolflf   .  .  .  • 

3.  The  degradation  of  the  pulpit    .  .  •  • 

4.  Some  notable  preachers— (1)  Johann  Joachim   Spald- 

ing ;  (2)  George  Joachim  ZoUikofer ;  (3)  Franz 
Volkmar  Reinhard  ;  (4)  Joh.  Caspar  Hafeli  .    202 

III.  The  Mediators        .  .  •  •  *   , .     * 

1.  Johann  Gotf  ried  Herder— (1)  His  ideal  of  preaching ; 

(2)  his  sermons  ;  (3)  a  characteristic  passage  .  .     204 

2.  Friedrich    Daniel    Schleiermacher— (1)   His    position, 

religious  and  theological ;  (2)  his  combination  of 
pietism  and  rationalism;  (3)  his  conception  of 
preaching  ;  (4)  his  own  preaching     .  .  .207 

3.  Schools  of  preachers— (1)  The  Mediating  School :  Karl 

Immanuel  Nitzsch  and  Friederich  August  Tholuck  ; 

(2)  Pietists:  Ludwig  Hofacker  and  Claus  Harms; 

(3)  Biblical  preachers:  Rudolf  Stier  and  Friede- 
rich Wilhelm  Krummacher    ....    209 


200 
201 


xviu  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Evangelists  and  Missionaries. 

rAOB 

L  The  Evangelical  Revival  in  England  .  ,  ,211 

1.  Its  historical  importance  ....    211 

2.  John    Wesley — (1)    His  religious  development ;    (2) 

his  distinctive  theology  ;  (3)  the  peril  and  the  power 

of  this  type  of  theology  .  .  .  .212 

3.  George  Whitefield— (1)  His  religious  development ;  (2) 

the  effect  of  his  first  sermon    ....     214 

4.  The  joint    labours    of    Wesley   and    Whitefield — (1) 

Wesley's  defence  of  open-air  preaching;    (2)  the 

extent  and  effects  of  their  movement  .  .  215 

6.  John  Wesley's  preaching  .  .  »  .  216 

6.  George  Whitefield's  preaching    ....  217 

7.  An  example  of  Wesley's  preaching         .  .  .  217 

8.  „  „         „   Whitefield's  preaching  .  .  .     219 

9.  The  organisation   of  lay  preaching — (1)  The  need  of 

this  ministry  ;  (2)  Wesley's  defence  ;  (3)  notable  lay 
preachers  ......    220 

II.  The  Extension  of  the  Movement  .  .  .    221 

1.  Its  influence  among  Churchmen  and  Dissenters  in 

England  .  .  .  .  .  .221 

2.  The  New  England  revival :  Jonathan  Edwards  .     222 

3.  The  influence   in  Scotland — (1)  John  Maclaurin ;   (2) 

John  Erskine ;  (3)  the  Evangelical  party  in  the 
Church  of  Scotland  :  Dr.  Andrew  Thomson  .  .     223 

4.  Dr.  Thomas  Chalmers— (1)  His  religious  awakening; 

(2)  his  preaching  ;  (3)  an  example     .  .  .     224 

6.  Robert  Murray  M'Cheyne  and  Edward  Irving.  .    227 

6.  Scottish  Independency    .....     227 

7.  The  Evangelical  Union  .  ,  .  .  .228 

8.  Dwight  L.  Moody  .  .  .  .  .229 

III.  Modern  Foreign  Missions.  ....    230 

1.  The  first-fruits  of  the  Evangelical  Revival— (1)  Previous 

missionary  effort;  (2)  William  Carey  and  the 
Baptist  Missionary  Society  ;  (3)  the  Serampore 
Mission  .  .  .  .  .230 

2.  TheLondonMissionarySociety—(l)  Its  formation;  (2) 

the  mission  to  the  South  Seas:  John  Williams         .  232 

3.  The  Church  Missionary  Society  :  Henry  Martyn  .  233 

4.  The  Church  of  Scotland  Missions  :  Alexander  Dufif      .  234 
6.  The  American  Board  of  Foreign  Missions :  Adoniram 

Judson  .  .  .  .  .  .234 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS  xix 


6.  The  opening  of  China — (1)  Eobert  Morrison  ;  (2)  James 

Legge ;    (3)   Griffith   John  and   Timothy   Richard ; 

(4)  James  Gilmour       .....     236 

7.  The  spread  of  the  gospel  in  the  South  Seas — (1)  Bishop 

Patteson ;    (2)  J.  G.   Paton ;    (3)   James   Chalmers, 
"Tamate"         .  .  .  .  .  .237 

8.  Light  in  "Darkest  Africa"— (1)  Alexander  Mackay  of    238 

Uganda  ;  (2)  Robert  Moffatt ;  (3)  David  Livingstone 

9.  The  value  of  the  record  of  missions  to  the  Christian 

Preacher  ......     240 


CHAPTER  X- 
The  Repairers  of  the  Breach. 

1.  The  difficulty  of  a  comprehensive  title  .  ,  .    241 

2.  The  breach  between  church  and  world  .  .  .     241 

3.  The  conservative,  progressive,  mediating  tendencies     .    241 

The  Conservative  Tendency        ....    242 

1.  John  Henry  Newman — (1)  The  Tractarian  movement ; 

(2)  Newman's   personality  ;   (3)  his  preaching ;    (4) 
example  of  his  preaching       ....     242 

2.  Henry  Parry  Liddon — (1)  His  career  and  character; 

(2)  example  of  his  preaching  ....     245 

3.  Charles  Had  don  Spurgeon — (1)  His  characteristics;  (2) 

reason  of  his  success ;   (3)  example  of  his  preach- 
ing      .  .  .  .  .  .  .247 

4.  Thomas  Guthrie,  John  Ker,  John  Cairns  .  .    250 

The  Progressive  Tendency  ....    251 

1.  Frederick  William    Robertson — (1)   His    career    and 

character ;    (2)   his  sermons ;    (3)   example  of   his 
preaching         .  .  .  .  .  .251 

2.  Henry  Ward  Beecher — (1)  His  view  of  preaching;  (2) 

his  characteristics  ;  (3)  example  of  his  preaching       .     253 

3.  Joseph  Parker — (1)  His  characteristics;   (2)   example 

of  his  preaching  .....  255 

4.  James  Marti  neau  .....  257 

5.  William  and  John  Pulsford        ....  257 

6.  John   Caird — (1)   His    oratory ;    (2)  example  of   his 

preaching         ......     258 

7.  Edward  Caird  and  Thomas  Hill  Green  .  ,  .    260 

The  Mediating  Tendency  .....    260 

1.  Phillips  Brooks— (1)   His  characteristics;  (2)  conclu- 

sion of  his  book  on  preaching  ,  ,  .     260 

2.  William  Connor  Magee  and  Frederic  William  Farrar  .     262 


XX  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

PAGB 

3.  Alexander  Maclaren — (1)  Testimonies  to  his  greatness  ; 

(2)  causes  of  his  success  ;  (3)  his  methods  of  prepara- 
tion ;  (4)  sayings  on  the  preacher's  calling     .  .     263 

4.  Robert  William  Dale — (1)  His  doctrinal  preaching  ;  (2) 

his  style  ......  265 

5.  Andrew  Martin  Fairbairn  ....  267 

6.  Hugh  Price  Hughes 268 

7.  Charles  Silvester  Home — (1)  His  career;    (2)  "The 

Romance  of  Modern  Preaching "        .  .  .    269 

8.  The  appeal  of  the  dead  to  the  living  preachers.  .    270 

PART  II. 

THE  CREDENTIALS,  QUALIFICATIONS  AND 
FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  PREACHER. 

Introductory — The  History  of  Preaching  and 
THE  Preacher  To-day. 

CHAPTER  I. 

The  Preacher  as  Apostle,  Prophet,  and  Scribe. 

I.  The  Preacher  as  Apostle  ....    273 

1.  The  personal  experience  of  Christ  .  .  .     273 

2.  The  personal  vocation  by  Christ — (1)  The  inward  call ; 

(2)  the  outward  confirmation  .  ,  .    275 

3.  The    authority  of  the  preacher  as  apostle,  and    its 

obligation        ......    276 

4.  The  maintenance  of  the  historical  continuity  of  the 

Church 278 

II.  The  Preacher  as  Prophet  ....  278 

1.  The  spiritual  equipment  of  the  preacher  as  Christian  .  278 

2.  The  spiritual  equipment  of  the  preacher  as  prophet     .  279 

3.  The  duty  of  true  and  the  danger  of  false  prophecy      .  280 

4.  The  difference  between  the  ancient  and  the  modern 

prophet  ..»•..    281 

III.  The  Preacher  as  Scribe  .....    282 

1 .  The  dependence  of  the  preacher  on  the  Holy  Scriptures .     282 

2.  The  problem  of  the  results  of  modern  scholarship  for 

the  preacher — (1)  The  duty  of  candour  and  courage 
in  dealing  with  the  Bible  ;  (2)  the  duty  of  consider- 
ateness  in  dealing  with  the  Bible  ;  (3)  the  principles 
to  be  followed  in  dealing  with  the  Bible        .  .     283 

3.  The   results  of  modern  scholarship  in  relation  to  the 

Christian  Gospel — (1)  The  results  of  secondary  and 


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PAQE 


286 


296 
296 


of  primary  importance  distinguished  ;  (2)  the  results 
not  really  adverse  to  the  trustworthiness  of  the 
Gospel ;  (3)  the  results  in  the  light  of  the  self- witness 
of  the  Gospel ;  (4)  the  results  as  advantageous  to 
the  preacher    ..•••• 

4.  The  obligation  on  the  preacher  to  study  according  to 

the  best  methods— (1)  The  right  method  of  study— 
the  historical ;  (2)  the  profitableness  of  the  right 
method ^^^ 

5.  The  value  of  expository  preaching         ,  .  •    291 

CHAPTER  II. 
The  Preacher  as  Scholar,  Sage,  Seer,  Saint. 
I.  The  Preacher  as  Scholar  .  •  •  .293 

1.  The  relation  of  the  scribe  to  the  scholar  .  .293 

2.  The  scholarship  necessary  for  the  preacher- (1)  Physical 

science ;  (2)  general  history  ;  (3)  philosophy  ;  (4) 
study  of  religions        .  .  .  •  •     294 

II.  The  Preacher  as  Sage      .  .  .  •  • 

1.  The  exercise  of  prudence  and  wisdom  in  intellectual 

questions  .  .  •  •  •  • 

2.  The  exercise  of  prudence  and  wisdom  in  moral  questions 

—(1)  The  dependence  of  morality  on  religion  in 
Christianity  ;  (2)  the  double  challenge  to  be  met  by 
the  Christian  moralist ;  (3)  the  application  of  Chris- 
tian ethics  in  modern  society  ;  (4)  the  necessary 
qualifications  of  the  Christian  preacher         .  .     298 

3.  The  exercise  of  prudence  and  wisdom  in  religious 

questions— (1)  The  challenge  of  Christian  theology 
by  science,  criticism  and  philosophy  ;  (2)  the  need  of 
spiritual  discernment  as  well  as  knowledge  .  .    302 

[II.  The  Preacher  as  Seer      .....    304 

1.  The  need  of  the  certainty  of  the  reality  of  God  .     304 

2.  The  mistake  of  mysticism  regarding  the  knowledge  of 

God 

3.  The  methods  of  the  culture  of  the  devout  life 

IV.  The  Preacher  as  Saint     . 

1.  The  common  call  to  sainthood    . 

2.  The  obligation  of  sainthood  in  the  preacher 

3.  The  sins  which  specially  beset  the  preacher— (1)  The 

desire  for  popularity  ;  (2)  the  assertion  of  self ;  (3) 
the  greed  for  gain  ;  (4)  inconsistency  of  life ;  and  an 
artificial  manner  in  and  out  of  pulpit  .  .311 

4.  The  preacher's  place  among  his  fellow-men       .  .    314 


306 
308 

309 
309 

310 


xxu  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  III. 
The  Pebacher  as  Priest,  Teacher,  Pastoe  and  Evangelist. 

PASI 

I.  The  Preacher  as  Priest   .....  317 

1.  Preaching  as  well  as  conduct  of  worship  a  priestly  act .  317 

2.  The  sermon  as  an  act  of  worship  in  praise  or  prayer     .  317 

3.  The  correction  of  the  preacher's  excessive  subjectivity  318 

4.  The  conduct  of  worship  by  the  preacher  .  .  319 

5.  The  argument  for  and  against  a  liturgy  .  .  320 

6.  The  effect  on  the  hearers  of  the  view  of  the  sermon  as 

an  act  of  worship         .....  322 

7.  The    practical    consequences    of    this  conception    as 

regards  the  intention  of  the  preacher,  and  the  im- 
pression on  the  hearers  ....  323 

II.  The  Preacher  as  Teacher  ....  324 

1.  Reasons  for  the  revolt  against  doctrinal  preaching,  and 

its  dangers       ......  324 

2.  The  need  of  a  knowledge  of  the  principles  and  methods 

of  teaching        ......  326 

3.  The  preacher's  function  as  a  teacher  of  teachers  .  327 

4.  The  importance  of  teaching  in  the  pulpit  .  .  328 

5.  The  need  of  method  in  choice  of  themes  and  texts        .  329 

III.  The  Preacher  as  Pastor  .....  329 

1.  The  demand  on  the  preacher  of  the  varied  needs  of  the 

congregation    ......  329 

2.  The  value  of  pastoral  experience  and  service  to  the 

preacher  ......  331 

3.  The  appeal  of  the  pulpit  to  men  as  regards  business 

interests  and  social  problems,  and  its  danger  .  332 

4.  The  value  of  the  science  of  psychology  for  the  cure  of 

souls    .......  335 

IV.  The  Preacher  as  Evangelist       ....  336 

1.  The  duty  of  the  preacher  as  an  evangelist         .  .  336 

2.  The  danger  of  extreme  views  and  false  assumptions  .  337 

3.  The  lessons  taught  by  psychology — (1)  The  variety  of 

religious  experience  ;  (2)  the  influence  of  the  natural 
on  the  spiritual  development ;  (3)  the  unsoundness 

of  common  evangelistic  methods        .  .  .  338 

4.  The  value   of  a  series  of  meetings   conducted  by  a 

minister  ......  339 

6.  The  danger  of  any  stereotyped  evangelistic  method       .  340 

6.  The  duty  of  "  home"  evangelisation  by  the  preacher  .  341 

7.  The  preaching  of  the  missionary  abroad  .  .  .  342 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS  xxm 

PART  III. 

THE  PREPARATION  AND  THE  PRODUCTION 
OF  THE  SERMON. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

PAOB 

1.  The  narrower  and  the  wider  sense  of  preparation         .    344 

2.  The  dominant  interest  of  the  sermon — (1)  Not  self- 

expression  ;  (2)  not  scripture  exposition ;  (3)  not 
private  concerns  of  the  hearers  .  .  .     345 

3.  Ciod's  message  to  men      .....    347 

4.  The    preferable    form  of    the   sermon — (1)  Not  the 

homily,  but  the  sermon  ;  (2)  opposition  of  topical  and 
expository  preaching  not  absolute ;  (3)  reasons  for 
preferring  the  topical  sermon :  (a)  material,  (6)  formal ; 
(4)  the  expository  method  of  the  topical  sermon        .     348 

5.  The  relation  of  homiletics  and  rhetoric  .  .351 

6.  The  freedom  of  the  preacher  and  his  need  of  guidance     353 

CHAPTER  I. 
The  Charactee  op  the  Sermon. 

1.  Variety  of  form  of  the   Christian  minister's  public 

work — (1)  Delivering  a  lecture;  (2)  teaching  Bible 
class  or  Sunday  school ;  (3)  offering  a  few  remarks  ; 
(4)  giving  an  address  ;  (5)  making  a  speech    .  .     355 

2.  Edifying  and  evangelising  preaching—  (1)  Confirmation 

by  confession  of  the  truth  ;  (2)  evangelisation  neces- 
sary in  every  Church ;  (3)  combining  edification 
and  evangelisation       .....    357 

3.  Adaptation  of  sermon  to  differences  of  age  and  circum- 

stance— (1)  Sermons  to  boys  and  girls  ;  (2)  sermons 
to  young  men  and  young  women ;  (3)  sermons  to 
the  middle-aged ;  (4)  sermons  to  the  aged,  sick, 
bereaved,  etc.  ......     360 

4.  Determination  of  the  definite  object  of  the  sermon — 

(1)  The  aesthetic  and  practical  demand  for  unity; 

(2)  didactic,  devotional,  and  practical  sermons  .     363 

5.  Consideration  of  the  interests  of  the  hearers — (1)  Acci- 

dental, formal,  and  artificial  interests ;  (2)  more 
permanent  and  universal  interests :  (a)  nature,  {b) 
history,  (c)  man,  {d)  Christ  alone  supreme  ;  (3)  the 
three  interests  of  the  Gospel,  dogmatic,  ethical  and 
personal :  (a)  difference  of  hearers'  and  preacher's 
interest,  {h)  method  of  presenting  the  truth .  .     365 


XXIV  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 


PAQS 


6.  The  influence  of  the  occasion  on  the  purpose  of  the 
sermon — (1)  Christmas,  Easter,  Whitsuntide;  (2) 
Peace  and  Christian  unity  ;  (3)  the  Christian  year ; 
(4)  natural  seasons ;  (5)  Temperance  Sunday ;  (6) 
Missionary  Sunday  ;  (7)  Civic  Sunday  ;  (8)  Sunday- 
scliool  anniversary  ;  (9)  students'  day  ;  (10)  anni- 
versary service;  (11)  all  occasions  subordinate  to 
main  end  of  preaching  Christ ;  (12)  baptism,  etc.     .    370 

CHAPTER  II. 

The  Choice  of  Subjects  and  Texts. 

1.  The  use  of  the  text  in  the  sermon — (1)  Objections  to ;  (2) 

reasons  for ;  (3)  dealing  with  difficulties  of  the 
practice  ......     378 

2.  The  rules  for  the  proper  use  of  the  text — (1)  Finding 

the  Word  of  God  in  the  Scriptures  ;  (2)  not  impos- 
ing the  Word  of  God  dogmatically  ;  (3)  not  using 
wrong  readings  or  false  renderings  ;  (4)  adhering  to 
the  correct  historical  exegesis  .  .  .    379 

3.  The  ways  of  finding  the  text — (1)  Inspiration,  provi- 

dence, accident ;  (2)  systematic  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures ;  (3)  method  in  choice  of  texts  ,  .  .     382 

4.  The  choice  of  the  subject  for  a  sermon — (1)  The  associa- 

tion of  a  text  with  a  subject :  (a)  inference  from 
general  to  particular  or  particular  to  general,  (b) 
reasoning  from  analogy,  (c)  difference  of  importance 
of  idea  in  text  and  subject,  {d)  suggestion  of  a  subject 
in  a  text,  (e)  selection  of  one  subject  out  of  a  number 
in  a  text,  (/)  the  text  as  the  starting-point  of  the 
subject ;  (2)  method  in  the  choice  of  subjects  .     385 

5.  The  necessary  scope  of  the  text — (1)  Not  to  be  deter- 

mined by  chapter  and  verse  divisions  ;  (2)  but  by 
the  unity  of  the  subject ;  (3)  a  unity  not  to  be 
divided,  nor  unities  combined  .  .  .     390 

6.  The  Bible  of  the  closet,  the  classroom  and  the  pulpit   .     391 

CHAPTER  III. 
The  Contents  of  the  Sermon. 

1.  The  order  of  treatment  of  contents  and  arrangement   .     393 

2.  Facts,  ideas  or  ideals,  definitions  and  judgments— (1) 

Exposition  of  facts — description  and  narration  ;  (2) 
exposition  of  ideas  and  ideals  ;  (3)  the  requireinenta 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS  xxv 


of  a  definition  ;  (4)  the  use  of  instances  ;  (5)  the  move- 
ment of  thought  in  judgments  .  .  .    394 

3.  Reasons  and  reasoning — (1)  Giving  reasons;   (2)  the 

kinds  of  reasons  to  be  given  ;  (3)  following  a  line  of 
reasoning  ;  (4)  the  forms  of  reasoning  :  (a)  deductive 
reasoning,  (b)  analogical  reasoning,  (c)  a  fortiori 
reasoning,  (d)  inductive  reasoning,  («)  argumentum 
ad  hominem  and  redudio  ad  absurdum,  (/)  thesis, 
antithesis,  synthesis    .....     398 

4.  The  appeal  to  motives — (1)  The  human  affections  ;  (2) 

admiration  for  greatness,  wisdom,  goodness ;  (3) 
reverence  for  truth  and  holiness  ;  (4)  the  desire  for 
happiness  ;  (5)  the  taste  for  beauty ;  (6)  the  feeling 
of  honour  ;  (7)  the  dread  of  ridicule  ;  (8)  the  sense  of 
humour ;  (9)  the  social  feeling  .  .  .     410 

5.  The   personality  of    the  preacher — (1)   Unction ;    (2) 

authority         .  .  .  .  .  .417 

6.  The  gathering  of  the  material — (1)   The  "envelope" 

method;    (2)    the  "note-book"  method;    (3)    the 

*  meditation "  method  .  .  ,  418 


CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Arrangement  of  the  Sermon. 

1.  The  need  of  arrangement  in  a  sermon   .  .  .    421 

2.  The  value    of    divisions    in   a    sermon — (1)    to    the 

preacher  ;  (2)  to  the  hearers     ....     422 

3.  The  unity-in-variety  of  the  sermon        .  .  .     425 

4.  The  announcement  of  the  text  at  the  beginning  of  the 

sermon  ......     425 

5.  The    general    need    for    an     introduction — (1)    The 

"  occasional "  introduction  ;  (2)  the  "  expository  " 
introduction    ......     426 

6.  The  statement  of  the  subject  of  the  sermon — (1)  The 

statement  as  a  theme  or  a  thesis  ;  (2)  the  limitations 
of  the  thesis;  (3)  the  "wide"  and  the  "narrow" 
theme  ;  (4)  the  theses  the  Scriptures  supply  .  .    429 

7.  The  discovery   of  the  divisions   of  the  sermon — (1) 

Division  as  the  "  natural  development "  of  the  text ; 
(2)  the  use  of  the  categories  of  thought ;  (3)  the  logi- 
cal rules  to  be  observed  ;  (4)  the  treatment  of  the 
parts  of  a  sermon         .....     432 

8.  The  arrangement  from  the  oratorical  standpoint  as 

well  as  the  logical — (1)  The  need  of  "  continuous  * 


XXVI  TABLE   OF   C0NTP:NTS 

movement;  (2)  the  need  of  "progressive"  move- 
ment ;  (3)  the  importance  of  transitions  .  .  436 
9.  The  conclusion,  or  the  peroration — (1)  A  conclusion 
not  always  necessary ;  (2)  special  application  to 
different  hearers ;  (3)  the  conclusion  as  focus  of 
argument  or  appeal ;  (4)  the  conclusion  as  continued 
contact  with  hearers ;  (5)  the  conclusion  as  summit 
of  the  ascent  of  the  sermon  ;  (6)  the  fitting  close  in 
prayer  or  praise           .            .            •            ,            .    440 

CHAPTER  V. 
The  Composition  of  the  Seemon. 

1.  The  need  of  writing  for  the  preacher     .  ,  ,  443 

2.  The  sermon  as  literature  ....  443 

3.  The  place  of  beauty  in  the  sermon         .  ,  .  444 

4.  The  sermon  as  a  speech  and  not  an  essay          .            .  445 
6.  The  simplicity  of  language         ....  446 

6.  The  danger  of  vulgar  language,  Journalese  and  Jargon    447 

7.  The  forming  of  a  good  style — (1)  Not  by  imitation, 

but  assimilation ;  (2)  from  poetry  and  the  English 
Bible    .  .  .  .  .  .  .448 

8.  The  qualities  of  purity  and  lucidity— (1)  Purity ;  (2) 

lucidity  or  perspicuity  ;  (3)  order      .  .  .     450 

9.  Interest  in  expression  as  well  as  ideas    .  .  .    453 

10.  The  quality  of  beauty  (or  grace) — (1)  Unity -in-variety  ; 

(2)  concrete  language  :  (3)  danger  of  the  ornamental    454 

11.  The  quality  of  strength  .....     456 

12.  Colour  and  movement  in  style — (1)  Colour  ;  (2)  move- 

ment ;  (3)  variety  and  elegance  .  .  .    458 

13.  The  two  paradoxes  of  style         ....    460 

CHAPTER  VI. 
The  Deliveky  of  the  Sermon. 

1.  Different  methods  of  delivery— (1)  Memorising  ;   (2) 

reading  ;  (3)  extempwc  speech,  with  (a)  fully  written 
MS,  {h)  notes,  (c)  outline  ;  (4)  the  advantage  of  the 
spoken  over  the  read  sermon  ....     462 

2.  The  conditions  of  facility  in  free  speech — (1)  Fulness 

of  knowledge  ;  (2)  clearness  of  thought ;  (3) 
orderly  arrangeuieut ;  (4)  abundant  and  varied 
vocabulary  ;  (5)  previous  meditation  and  emotion    .     465 

3.  The  demands  upon  the  voice      ....     469 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS  xxvii 

PAOE 

4.  The  training  of  the  voice — (1)  Voice-production;  (2) 

enunciation  or  articulation ;  (3)  accent ;  (4)  native 
accent ;  (5)  pronunciation  ;  (6)  projection  ;  (7)  ex- 
pression :  (a)  soul  and  speech,  (b)  means  of 
expression,  (c)  the  use  of  the  voice  .  .  .     470 

5.  The  use  of  gesture  .....    476 

6.  The  earthly  vessel  worthy  of  the  heavenly  treasure     .    477 

ABBREVIATIONS. 

As  very  frequent  reference  will  be  made  to  certain  works,  the 
)  I  lowing  abbreviations  will  be  used  : 

Crowned  Masterpieces  of  Eloquence  .  ,  ,       CME 


Hie  TForld's  Great  Sermoiis 

Library  of  English  Literature  :  Religion 

Ker's  History  of  Preaching 

Dargan's  History  of  Preaching    .  . 

Bering's  Lehrbuch  der  Homiletik  . 

Van  Uosterzee's  Practical  Theology         . 


WGS 
LELR 
KHP 
DHP 
HLH 
OPT 


THE    CHRISTIAN    PREACHER. 

INTRODUCTION. 


1.  Wheee  Christ  is,  there  is  His  Church,  for  His  own 
promise  is  that  "  where  two  or  three  are  gathered  together 
in  my  name,  there  am  I  in  the  midst  of  them."  ^  To  this 
Church,  in  virtue  of  His  authority  and  in  reliance  on  His 
presence,  He  entrusted  a  mission  to  the  world.  "  All 
authority  hath  been  given  unto  me  in  heaven  and  on  earth. 
Go  ye  therefore,  and  make  disciples  of  all  the  nations, 
baptizing  them  into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost :  teaching  them  to  observe  all 
things  whatsoever  I  commanded  you ;  and,  lo,  I  am  with 
you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world."  ^  Paul,  the 
chief  of  the  apostles,  did  not  misunderstand  his  commission 
when  he  subordinated  the  symbolic  ordinance  to  the 
evangelical  proclamation  and  boldly  declared,  "  Christ  sent 
me  not  to  baptize,  but  to  preach  the  Gospel."  ^  At  the 
Eeformation  the  Protestant  Churches,  in  opposition  to  the 
Eoman  Catholic,  carefully  defined  the  nature  and  the 
functions  of  the  Church.  John  Knox  in  the  Scots  Confession 
in  1560  declares,  "  The  notes  of  the  true  Kirk  of  God,  we 
believe,  confess,  and  avow  to  be — First,  the  true  preaching 
of  the  Word  of  God,  in  the  which  God  has  revealed 
"^mself  to  us.     Secondly,  the  right  administration  of  the 

^  Mt  18«>. 

'  Mt  28'*'^.     Even  if  tlie  commission  is  not  the  very  words  of  Jesus  it 
presses  the  Church's  sense  of  its  calling. 
» 1  Co  1" 


2  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Sacraments,  which  must  be  annexed  to  the  word  and 
promise  of  God,  to  seal  and  confirm  the  same  in  our  hearts. 
Lastly,  ecclesiastical  discipline  uprightly  ministered  as 
God's  Word  prescribed,  whereby  vice  is  repressed  and 
virtue  nourished."  In  the  Augsburg  Confession  in  1530, 
Luther  and  the  Saxon  Keformers  defined  the  Church  to  be 
"the  congregation  of  saints  (or  general  assembly  of  the 
faithful)  wherein  the  Gospel  is  rightly  taught  and  the 
Sacraments  are  rightly  administered."  Article  XIX.  in 
the  Thirty-nine  Ai'ticles  of  the  Church  of  England  runs 
thus :  "  The  visible  Church  of  Christ  is  a  congregation  of 
faithful  men,  in  the  which  the  pure  Word  of  God  is 
preached,  and  the  Sacraments  be  duly  ministered  according 
to  Christ's  appointment  in  aU  those  things  that  of  necessity 
are  requisite  to  the  same."  Coming  nearer  our  own  time, 
Ritschl's  account  of  the  Church  is  "  that  it  is  recognised  as 
the  community  of  saints  by  the  proclamation  of  the  Gospel, 
and  the  administration  of  the  Sacraments  in  accordance 
with  their  institution,  as  these  are  the  channels  of  the  dis- 
tinctively sanctifying  activity  of  God."^  In  all  these 
statements  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  is  not  only  put  first 
in  order,  but  also  in  importance ;  for  the  Sacraments  are 
significant  and  valuable  only  as  the  symbols  and  the 
channels  of  the  truth  and  grace  offered  in  the  Gospel. 
The  discipline  of  which  Knox  speaks,  is  also  dependent  on, 
expressed  in,  and  enforced  by  the  preaching  of  the  Word 
of  God. 

2.  This  appreciation  of  preaching  as  the  first  duty  of 
the  Chui'ch  of  Christ  is  widely  challenged  to-day.  On  the 
one  hand  the  worship  is  exalted  over  the  sermon,  and  on 
the  other  practice  is  said  to  be  more  important  than 
doctrine.  In  this  connection  the  text,  "  the  Elingdom  of 
God  is  not  in  word,  but  in  power,"  ^  is  sometimes  quoted, 
as  if  for  Paul  the  preaching  of  Christ  crucified  were  not 
the  power  and  wisdom  of  God.*  If  a  sermon  is  merely  a 
literary  essay  or  an  elocutionary  display,  in  which  grace  or 

»  Game's  Tlie  RUschlian  Theology,  2nd  ed.,  pp.  422-42* 
2  1  Co  i^".  »  1  Co  1«. 


INTKODUCTION  3 

finish  of  style  or  charm  and  force  of  delivery  is  the 
primary  consideration,  in  which  the  verbal  mode  is  more 
important  than  the  spiritual  matter,  then  preaching  must 
yield  first  place  to  worship  or  to  work.  If  the  preacher  is 
not  consciously  or  voluntarily  God's  ambassador,  if  he  is 
not  freely  giving  unto  men  what  he  is  freely  receiving 
from  God  by  the  enlightenment  of  His  Spirit,  if  he  cannot 
claim  humbly  and  yet  confidently  to  stand  in  the  succes- 
sion of  the  prophets  and  the  apostles ;  but  if  he  has  taken 
his  office  unto  himself  for  hire,  if  he  is  merely  delivering 
his  own  opinions  and  sentiments,  then  the  pulpit  is  one  of 
those  shows  and  shams  of  which  the  Church  cannot  rid 
itself  too  soon,  and  which  it  tolerates  only  at  the  peril  of 
the  souls  entrusted  to  its  care.  With  such  shepherds, 
what  Milton  says  about  the  clergy  of  his  own  day  must 
prove  true  in  any  age  : 

"The  hungry  sheep  look  up,  and  are  not  fed. 
But,  swoln  with  wind  and  the  rank  mist  they  draw. 
Rot  inwardly,  and  foul  contagion  spread  : 
Besides  what  the  grim  wolf  with  privy  paw 
Daily  devours  apace,  and  nothing  sed."^ 

However  far  short  the  Christian  ministry  may  often  have 
fallen  in  this  holy  calling,  yet  the  note  of  the  true 
Church  remains  the  preaching  of  the  Word  of  God.  As 
the  history  to  be  unfolded  in  the  following  pages  will 
clearly  and  fully  show,  the  periods  of  decadence  have  been 
marked  by  the  loss  of  the  power  of  the  pulpit ;  and  the 
eras  of  revival  and  reform  have  been  heralded  by  a  renewal 
of  the  preacher's  influence.  The  preaching  of  the  Word  of 
God  does  not  mean  merely  that  the  text  is  taken  from  the 
Bible,  that  the  phraseology  is  scriptural,  that  the  doctrine  is 
orthodox  according  to  the  generally  received  standards,  and 
the  sentiments  pious  according  to  the  conventional  pattern  ; 
but  it  means  nothing  less  and  else  than  this — that  the 
preacher  is  an  inspired  man  because  he  is  experiencing  the 
presence  and  power  of  God's  Spirit  in  his  reason,  conscience, 
affections,  and  purposes,  that  his  own  "  life  is    hid   with 

1  Lycidas,  U.  125-129. 


4  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Christ  in  God,"  ^  that  he  is  in  all  meekness  and  lowliness, 
because  of  his  unworthiness,  yet  with  all  boldness  and 
trustfulness,  because  of  God's  call  and  endowment,  fulfilling 
a  Divine  mission  in  delivering  a  Divine  message. 

3.  If  this  be  the  ideal  of  Christian  preaching,  then  it 
is  as  essential  and  necessary  even  as  worship :  for  God's 
approach  to  man  in  grace  through  His  Gospel  must  come 
before  man's  appeal  to  God  in  faith  through  prayer  and 
praise.  "  We  can  speak  of  an  intercourse  with  God  only 
when  we  are  sure  of  this,  that  God  speaks  to  us  intelligibly, 
but  also  understands  our  speech  and  has  regard  to  it  in 
His  operations  on  us."^  God's  revelation  must  precede 
and  evoke  our  religion.  It  is  at  least  as  important  that 
we  should  know  God's  will  as  that  we  should  make  our 
wishes  known  to  God.  God  is  worshipped  in  the  humble 
and  obedient  acceptance  of  His  preached  Word  as  in  the 
offering  of  prayer  and  praise.  Preaching  is  decried  and 
worship  magnified  for  this  among  other  reasons,  that 
intellectual  difficulties  have  so  obscured  the  glory  of  the 
Divine  revelation  in  Jesus  Christ,  that  the  preaching  of  the 
Gospel  is  not  felt  to  be  the  Word  of  God.  But  in  such  a 
case  the  question  is  justified  :  how  long  can  worship  be 
sustained  sincerely  and  fervently  without  some  assurance 
of  God's  grace  ?  Where  devotion  is  divorced  from  truth, 
it  is  to  be  observed  that  the  external  aids — "the  dim, 
religious  light "  of  the  pictured  window,  the  symbolism  of 
the  sculptured  stone  or  the  carved  wood,  the  suggestion  of 
human  costume,  picture,  and  gesture,  the  stimulus  of  music 
and  song — become  and  must  become  more  prominent. 
Can  it  be  doubted  that  the  appeal  to  the  conscience,  reason, 
and  affections  through  the  declaration  of  the  truth  and 
grace  of  God  will  be  more  effectual  in  inspiring  true 
devotion  than  the  excitement  of  devout  feelings  through 
fair  sights  and  sweet  sounds  ?  It  would  be  beyond  the 
province  of  this  volume  to  discuss  the  true  nature  and  the 
proper  methods  of  Christian  worship  ;  but  the  writer  feels 
justified  in  vindicating  the  claim  of  preaching  to  the  fore- 

'  Col  3^.  *  Herrmaun,  Vtrkfhr  des  Christen  mit  Oott,  p.  44. 


INTRODUCTION  5 

most  place  in  the  Christian  Church,  in  insisting  that 
worship  cannot  supplant  preaching,  which  is,  rightly  under- 
stood, itself  worship,  without  danger  and  loss  to  Christian 
life.  It  is  noteworthy  that  the  Churches  which  have 
exalted  preaching  have  generally  been  indifferent  to  ritual ; 
and  that  where  ritual  has  been  elaborated,  preaching  has 
declined.^  Without  straying  out  of  bounds  to  discuss  the 
larger  question  ^  thus  suggested,  the  writer  may  venture  to 
express  his  own  personal  preference  in  Browning's 
confession  : 

"  I  then  in  ignorance  and  weakness. 
Taking  God's  help,  have  attained  to  think 
My  heart  does  best  to  receive  in  meekness 
That  mode  of  worship,  as  most  to  his  mind, 
Where  earthly  aids  being  cast  behind. 
His  All  in  All  appears  serene 
"With  the  thinnest  human  veil  between."' 

4,  This  age  is  more  practical  than  devout ;  and  it  is 
for  the  sake  of  action  rather  than  emotion  that  doctrine  is 
neglected.  The  mistake  is  just  as  great.  We  cannot  do 
rightly  unless  we  know  truly.     God's  will  must  be  under- 

^  Attention  may  be  called  to  the  most  significant  and  valuable  Iie2)ort 
of  the  Archbishops'  First  Committee  of  Inquiry  on  The  Teaching  Office  of  the 
Church.  The  candid  and  courageous  confession  of  failure  should  not  be 
taken  up  as  a  reproach  by  the  other  churches  against  the  Church  of  England 
solely,  as  much  that  is  thus  said  is  mutatis  mutandis  true  of  all  the  churches  ; 
but  although  express  mention  is  not  made  of  the  attention  to  ritual  as  one 
of  the  causes  of  this  failure,  the  writer  is  persuaded  that  it  is  one  of  the 
factors  in  the  problem  generally  to  be  taken  into  account.  The  other 
churches  have  much  reason  for  heart-searching  as  regards  the  effectiveness  of 
their  preaching,  despite  their  greater  interest  in  it,  in  the  abundant  evidence 
which  has  been  gathered  among  the  soldiers  at  the  front  and  in  the  camps 
of  the  prevalent  ignorance  of,  and  indifference  to  the  Gospel  of  the  vast 
majority  of  the  manhood  of  the  nation.  The  volume,  giving  the  results  of  a 
searching  inquiry,  entitled  The  Army  and  Religion,  is  a  solemn  summons  to 
all  the  churches  to  self-scrutiny  in  regard  to  all  their  methods  of  work,  and 
especially  the  spirit  in  which  that  work  is  being  done.  The  content  and 
the  character  of  the  preaching  especially  calls  for  examination,  and  in  this 
examination  it  is  hoped  that  this  volume,  although  not  written  with  this 
specific  object  in  view,  may  be  of  some  worth  and  use. 

*  See  the  subsequent  chapter  on  the  Preacher  as  Priest. 

'  Christma.1  ".ve,  xxii.  11.  64-70. 


6  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Btood  to  be  done.  Pious  efforts  and  charitable  schemes 
there  may  be  without  the  guidance  and  control  of  the 
wisdom  of  God ;  but  genuinely  Christian  work  there  cannot 
be  without  the  instruction  and  direction  which  the  preach- 
ing of  the  Word  of  God  alone  can  give.  To  the  Church 
are  committed  "  the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven " ;  ^ 
but  the  Church's  foundation  is  the  confession  of  Jesus  the 
Christ.  It  is  not  by  an  instinct  or  impulse  that  the  prac- 
tical man  can  tell  the  methods  and  the  organs  by  which  the 
kingdom  of  God  can  be  most  speedily  and  surely  brought 
on  earth.  As  the  Hebrew  people  of  old  before  entering 
on  any  enterprise  for  God  sought  His  counsel,  so  the 
Church  of  Christ  in  these  days  more  than  ever  needs  in  all 
its  efforts  to  inquire  what  He  would  have  it  do.^  The 
sense  of  our  need  of  guidance  as  regards  personal  duty  in 
social  relations  is  very  widely  spread ;  and  if  the  Church 
fails  to  lead  along  the  new  paths  of  service,  it  will  lose  its 
influence  and  fail  in  its  vocation.  It  is  only  the  faith 
which  is  nourished  by  the  grace  of  God  presented  in  the 
Gospel  which  can  have  the  confidence  and  the  courage  to 
enter  on  the  heroic  and  strenuous  labours  by  which  alone 
the  cause  of  Christ  in  the  world  can  be  advanced.  It  is 
only  the  love  of  Christ  presented  in  the  Cross  which  can 
constrain  the  loyalty  and  obedience  which  the  service  in 
the  world  demands.  It  is  only  the  wisdom  which  a  study 
of  this  revelation  inspires  which  can  afford  the  insight  and 
the  foresight  to  apply  wisely  and  rightly  the  Church's 
resources  to  the  necessities  of  modern  society.  What 
should  we  think  of  a  commander  who  set  out  on  a  cam- 
paign without  any  knowledge  of  the  forces  at  his  command, 
the  nature  of  the  country  to  be  subdued,  the  purpose  of 
the  conflict,  or  the  method  of  its  prosecution  ?  Yet  not 
more  foolish  would  his  conduct  be  than  is  the  action  of 
those  advisers  of  the  Church  who  bid  it  work  and  not  talk, 
when  the  talk  is  counsel,  motive,  and  encouragement  in 

1  Mt  16". 

*  The  war  lias  brought  home  to  many  consciences  as  never  before  the 
need  of  applying  Christian  principles  to  all  human  relations. 


INTRODUCTION  7 

the  work.  If  the  Scriptures  warn  those  who  are  hearers 
and  not  doers,^  they  have  no  beatitude  for  the  man  who 
wants  to  be  a  doer  of  God's  Work  but  is  unwilling  to  be  a 
hearer  of  God's  Word,  in  which  His  Will  is  made  known. 

5.  No  good  reason  can  be  shown  for  subordinating 
the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  either  to  worship  or  to  work ; 
but  it  can  be  conclusively  proved  that  the  devout  emotions 
and  the  practical  activities  of  the  Church  must  be  stimu- 
lated and  sustained,  guided  and  guarded  by  the  faithful 
and  sincere  proclamation  of  Christian  truth.  These  three 
elements  in  the  Church's  mission — witness,  worship,  work 
— must  be  kept  in  their  proper  relation  and  due  proportion. 
Doctrine  which  does  not  inspire  devotion  is  not  the  living 
truth  of  God,  for  God's  approach  to  man  will  evoke  man's 
appeal  to  God.  Preaching  which  is  not  followed  by  practice 
is  not  God's  command  to  the  soul, for  that  will  constrain  obedi- 
ence. But,  on  the  other  hand,  devotion  which  is  not  the  soul's 
response  to  God's  revelation  will  prove  an  aspiration  which 
finds  no  satisfaction.  Practice  which  is  not  informed  and 
directed  by  the  known  and  acknowledged  will  of  God,  will 
express  only  human  prudence  and  policy,  and  not  Divine 
wisdom  and  righteousness.  So,  too,  the  devotion  which 
goes  not  hand  in  hand  with  practice  will  be  hollow,  and 
the  practice  which  is  not  linked  to  devotion  will  be  hard. 
The  entire  human  personality  must  be  addressed  and  exer- 
cised by  the  Church  in  its  varied  functions ;  but  from  this 
law  of  the  soul's  life  there  is  no  escape,  that  it  is  through 
the  enlightening  of  the  mind  that  the  quickening  of  the 
heart  and  the  energising  of  the  will  must  come.  Man's 
worship  of  and  work  for  God  must  wait  on  God's  witness 
in  the  Gospel  of  His  gi'ace  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord. 
For  the  fulfilment  of  its  mission,  what  is  of  primary 
importance  for  the  Church  is  its  message,  the  truth  which 
it  receives  from  God  and  communicates  to  man.  While 
"every  Scripture  mspired  of  God  is  profitable  for  teaching, 
for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruction  which  is  in 
righteousness," 2  while  "the  faith  was  once  for  all  delivered 

1  Mt  T-^-^,  Jas  122-25.  s  2  Ti  Z^K 


8  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

unto  the  saints,"  ^  while  "Jesus  Christ  is  the  same  yesterday, 
and  to-day,  yea,  and  for  ever,"^  the  apprehension  and 
application  of  the  revelation,  as  imperfect  and  partial,  must 
be  progressive ;  and  so  the  Church  must  serve  each  gen- 
eration by  adapting  its  message  to  each  age. 

II. 

1.  Before  passing  to  the  Message  of  the  Church  we 
must  look  a  little  more  closely  at  what  we  mean  by 
preoAihing,  which  we  have  tried  to  show  is  the  Church's  first 
charge  The  writer  knows  no  definition  with  which  he  finds 
himself  in  closer  agreement  than  that  of  the  great  preacher 
and  writer  on  preaching,  the  late  Bishop  Phillips  Brooks. 
Not  only  the  definition,  but  the  justification  of  that  defini- 
tion must  be  quoted  in  full :  "  Preaching  is  the^ommunica- 
tion  of  truth  by  man  to  men.  It  has  in  it  two  essential 
elements^  truth  and  personality.  Neither  of  these  can  it 
spare  and  still  be  preaching.  The  truest  truth,  the  most 
authoritative  statement  of  God's  will  communicated  in  any 
other  way  than  through  the  personality  of  brother  man  to 
men  is  not  preached  truth.  Suppose  it  is  written  on  the 
sky,  suppose  it  is  embodied  in  a  book  which  has  been  so 
long  held  in  reverence  as  the  direct  utterance  of  God  that 
the  vivid  personality  of  the  men  who  wrote  its  pages  has 
well-nigh  faded  out  of  it ;  in  neither  of  these  cases  is  there 
any  preaching.  And  on  the  other  hand,  if  men  speak  to 
other  men  that  which  they  do  not  claim  for  truth,  if  they 
use  their  powers  of  persuasion  or  of  entertainment  to  make 
other  men  listen  to  their  speculations,  or  do  their  will,  or 
applaud  their  cleverness,  that  is  not  preaching  either. 
The  first  lacks  personality.  The  second  lacks  truth.  And 
preaching  is  the  bringing  of  truth  through  personality. 
It  must  have  both  elements.  It  is  in  the  different  pro- 
portions in  which  the  two  are  mingled  that  the  difierence 
between  two  great  classes  of  sermons  and  preaching  lies. 
It  is  in  the  defect  of  one  or  the  other  element  that  every 
iJude^.  2  He  138. 


INTRODUCTION  9 

sermon  and  preacher  falls  short  of  the  perfect  standard. 
It  is  in  the  absence  of  one  or  the  other  element  that 
a  discourse  ceases  to  be  a  sermon,  and  a  man  ceases  to  be  a 
preacher  altogether."  ^  This  definition,  excellent  as  it  is, 
la<;k8  one  thing.  It  does  not  state  the  end  of  preaching. 
If  one  may  borrow  Aristotle's  distinctions,  it  gives  the 
formal  and  the  efficient,  but  not  the  final  cause.  It  may 
be  completed  thus — "  truth  through  personality  for  faith, 
duty,  and  hope,"  or  perhaps  the  words  "  eternal  life  "  might 
be  used  to  cover  the  three  terms.  To  make  the  definition 
more  precise  we  may  thus  expand  it,  "  divine  truth  through 
human  personality  for  eternal  life."  Each  of  the  three 
terms  in  the  definition  demands  closer  scrutiny. 

2.  What  do  we  mean  by  truth  ?  It  is  obvious  that 
when  we  regard  it  as  the  content  of  preaching  we  give  it  a 
narrower  extension  and  a  fuller  intention  than  the  term 
often  bears.  In  history  truth  is  fact ;  in  science  truth  is 
cause,  law,  order;  in  philosophy  it  is  the  interpretation 
of  the  Universe  which  to  the  thinker  makes  it  appear  an 
intelligible  unity,  with  meaning,  worth,  and  aim  throughout. 
In  morality  truth  is  the  ideal  which  as  the  categorical 
imperative  claims  recognition  and  realisation.  In  religion 
man  has  a  twofold  interest,  he  is  concerned  about  ultimate 
reality  and  final  destiny.     This  twofold  object  is  expressed 

*  Lectures  on  Preaching,  pp.  5-6,  Compare  Hooker's  Laws  of  Ecclesias- 
tical Polity,  Books  v.  xviii.  "  Because,  therefore,  want  of  the  knowledge  of 
God  is  the  cause  of  all  iniquity  amongst  men,  as  contrariwise  the  very  ground 
of  all  our  happiness,  and  the  seed  of  whatsoever  perfect  virtue  groweth  from 
us,  is  a  right  opinion  touching  things  divine  ;  this  kind  of  knowledge  we  may 
justly  set  down  for  the  first  and  chiefest  thing  which  God  imparteth  unto 
His  people,  and  our  duty  of  receiving  this  at  His  merciful  hands  for  the  first 
of  those  religious  offices  wherewith  we  publicly  honour  Him  on  earth.  For 
the  instruction,  therefore,  of  all  sorts  of  men  to  eternal  life,  it  is  necessary 
that  the  saored  and  saving  truth  of  God  be  openly  published  unto  them. 
Which  open  publication  of  heavenly  mysteries  is  by  an  excellency  termed 
Preaching.  For  otherwise  there  is  not  anything  publicly  notified  but  we 
may  in  that  respect,  rightly  and  properly,  say  it  is  preached.  So  that 
when  the  school  of  God  doth  use  it  as  a  word  of  art,  we  are  accordingly  to 
understand  it  with  restraint  to  such  special  matter  as  that  school  is  accus- 
tomed to  publish."  ft  is  to  be  observed  that  in  the  second  sentence  in  the 
words,  "the  instruction  of  all  sorts  of  men  to  eternal  life,"  Hooker  notes 
what  Phillips  Brooks  omits,  the  end  of  preaching. 


10  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

in  the  definition  of  faith  in  the  words,  "  Faith  is  the  giving 
substance  to  things  hoped  for,  the  test  of  things  not  seen."  ^ 
Eeligion  deals  with  the  invisible  as  giving  meaning  to  the 
visible,  and  with  the  future  as  offering  an  aim  to  the 
present.  The  savage  even  believes  in  gods  and  ghosts. 
Although  morality  and  religion  may  be  distinguished,  yet 
they  cannot  be  separated ;  even  at  a  low  stage  of  social 
development  the  tribal  custom  is  under  the  guardianship  of 
the  tribal  deity.  At  certain  periods  of  degeneration  ritual 
and  righteousness  may  be  divorced ;  but  the  higher  the 
development  the  closer  the  alliance,  nay,  the  more  com- 
plete the  identity  of  goodness  and  godliness.  The  unity  of 
religion  and  morality  is  affirmed  by  the  prophet  in  the 
words — "  He  hath  showed  thee,  O  man,  what  is  good ;  and 
what  doth  the  Lord  require  of  thee,  but  to  do  justly,  and  to 
love  mercy,  and  to  walk  humbly  with  thy  God  ?  "  ^  Kitual 
cannot  take  the  place  of  righteousness.  "  I  desire  mercy 
and  not  sacrifice,  and  the  knowledge  of  God  more  than 
burnt  offerings."^  In  the  Christian  religion,  holiness  of 
life  is  the  fruit  of  fellowship  with  God ;  morality  and 
religion  can  be  only  abstractly  distinguished ;  concretely 
they  are  inseparable.  Kant's  three  postulates  of  the 
practical  reason  (God,  freedom,  immortality)  are  the  reality, 
the  knowledge  of  which  is  the  truth  disclosed  in  preaching. 
3,  While  this  is  the  range  of  truth  ideally,  it  must  be 
recognised  that  actually  preaching  may  have  a  much 
narrower  scope.  Although  preaching  is  most  at  home  in 
the  realm  of  religion,  yet  there  may  be  a  declaration  of 
moral  principle  to  secure  moral  obedience,  which  cannot  be 
denied  the  name.  The  Positivist  may  preach  Humanity  as 
the  object  of  worship  and  service ;  the  Buddhist  may 
preach  a  plan  of  salvation  by  man's  own  effort,  without 
divine  assistance  ;  the  Ethicist  to-day  may  preach  morality 
without  any  theological  sanctions  ;  and  we  must  acknow- 
ledge them  all  as  preachers.  Nevertheless,  preaching  is 
generally  concerned  with  God  and  immortality,  as  well  as 
freedom  and  duty.  Philosophy  is  also  concerned  about 
^  B»  IV  ILY.  marg.  »  Mic  6^.  »  Hos  G*. 


INTRODUCTION  11 

ultimate  reality  and  final  destiny  ;  but  its  interest  is  specu- 
lative and  not  praoticaL  When  philosophy,  as  in  Stoicism, 
prescribes  a  moral  end,  or,  as  in  Neo-Platonism,  offers  a 
religious  good,  it  can  be  preached.  Where  the  communica- 
tion of  knowledge,  whether  in  history,  science,  or  philosophy, 
is,  however,  the  sole  object  of  speech,  we  have  not  got 
preaching  in  the  proper  sense.  A  lecture  is  given,  and  not 
a  sermon  delivered.  A  speech  on  a  political  platform  may 
appear  to  approach  a  sermon  more  closely  than  a  lecture 
does  in  having  a  practical  purpose ;  for  the  opinion  or  the 
action  commended  may  be  represented  as  desirable,  ex- 
pedient, wise,  and  good,  but  the  speaker  does  not  claim  to 
be  dealing  with  truth  about  ultimate  reality,  absolute  ideal, 
or  final  destiny  :  and  so,  whatever  his  manner  may  be,  he  is 
not  preaching,  in  the  proper  sense  of  the  word. 

4.  The  channel  through  which  the  truth  is  conveyed 
is  'personality.  The  whole  man  must  preach  in  a  twofold 
sense.  Not  only  must  the  proclamation  of  the  truth  exer- 
cise the  whole  personality,  as  mind,  heart,  and  will ; 
but  the  truth  itself  must  possess  and  command  all  the 
thoughts,  feelings,  and  wishes.  Without  the  one  there 
cannot  be  full  effectiveness,  without  the  other  there  cannot 
be  thorough  sincerity.  When  both  are  conjoined  we  have 
the  highest  type  of  preaching,  where  the  lips  confess  con- 
vincingly what  the  heart  believes  absolutely.  When  the 
whole  manhood  of  the  preacher  is  consecrated  unto  God,  it 
is  his  duty  to  bring  that  whole  man  to  bear  upon  the 
hearers  of  the  Word.  The  story  of  Elisha's  recovery  to  life 
of  the  son  of  the  Shunammite  suggests  what  the  preacher's 
method  should  be.  "  And  he  went  up,  and  lay  upon  the 
child,  and  put  his  mouth  upon  his  mouth,  and  his  eyes 
upon  his  eyes,  and  his  hands  upon  his  hands ;  and  he 
stretched  himself  upon  him ;  and  the  flesh  of  the 
child  waxed  warm."  ^  There  may  be,  and  ought  to 
be,  a  modest  reserve  regarding  personal  experience 
and  character ;  there  may  be  a  dignified  restraint  in 
tone    and    gesture;    and    yet   the  entire  perconality  may 

» 2  K  4»*. 


12  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

be  in  its  fullest  exercise,  so  as  to  transfer  as  com- 
pletely as  possible  from  speaker  to  hearer  the  whole 
content  of  the  message,  emotional  and  volitional  as  well  as 
intellectual.  The  failure  of  a  great  deal  of  preaching  to  be 
fully  effective  is  due  to  its  being  too  intellectualist.  The 
preacher  is  conveying  only  ideas  and  ideals  from  his  own 
to  another's  reason  and  conscience,  but  he  is  not  communi- 
cating the  passion  or  enthusiasm  he  may  himself  feel.  If 
the  truth  does  not  stimulate  his  own  convictions,  he  must 
not  pretend  feelings,  for  then  his  preaching  is  rhetoric, 
which  is  "  sounding  brass,  or  a  clanging  cymbal,"  ^  and  not 
the  eloquence  which  passes  from  heart  to  heart.  It  is 
probable,  however,  that  many  preachers  fail  to  express  the 
feelings  they  experience.  Without  weak  sentimentalism 
and  violent  emotionalism,  effective  preaching  does  demand 
that  there  shall  be  warmth  as  well  as  light.  That  truth, 
known  and  owned  as  truth,  does  not  move  the  heart  as 
might  be  expected,  is  probably  due  to  lack  of  imagination, 
or,  as  the  word  might  suggest  unreality,  vision,  the  faculty 
of  realising  the  spiritual,  the  ideal,  the  divine,  the  inward 
sense  of  the  supersensible.  Truth  is  often  apprehended  in 
the  abstractions  of  the  intellect,  instead  of  being  presented 
as  concrete  reality  for  the  spiritual  discernment.  This  is 
the  difference  between  the  scholar  or  the  sage  and  the  seer 
who  sees  Him  who  is  invisible.^  And  the  preacher  must 
be,  to  grow  to  his  full  stature,  seer  as  well  as  scholar  and 
sage.  Volition  must  not  be  excluded  from  preaching.  The 
sermon  must  be  a  deed  as  well  as  a  word.  The  preacher 
must  will  with  the  full  force  of  his  soul  the  salvation,  in  the 
full  New  Testament  sense,  of  the  hearers.  The  human  will 
must  at  its  utmost  stretch  commit  itself  in  prayer  to  the 
divine  will  that  God  may  work  the  good  pleasure  of 
His  will. 

5.  Preaching  is  not  merely  a  communication  of  know- 
ledge.    As  it  exercises  the  whole  personality  of  the  preacher, 
so  it  is  addressed  to  the  whole  personality  of  the  hearer 
as  a  moral  and  religious  subject.     As  the  truth  with  which 
^1  Co  131.  «Hell» 


INTRODUCTION  13 

it  deals  concerns  God,  freedom,  and  immortality,  so  its  aim 
is  to  evoke  faith,  stimulate  to  duty,  and  sustain  hope.  There 
must  be  an  enlightening  of  the  mind,  a  quickening  of 
the  heart,  and  a  strengthening  of  the  will  in  goodness 
and  godliness.  It  is  not  necessary  that  any  sermon  should 
produce  this  total  effect.  A  preacher  may  sometimes  aim 
at  instruction  ;  at  another,  work  for  decision  :  even  to  bring 
God's  peace  to  the  soul  in  emotional  distress  may  be  his 
purpose.  But,  whatever  may  be  the  immediate  result,  the 
ultimate  intention  must  always  be  to  bring  the  whole  per- 
sonality more  fully  under  the  influence  of  the  truth.  It  is 
sometimes  said  that  every  sermon  should  be  practical,  in 
the  narrow  sense  that  it  should  give  the  hearer  something 
to  do.  But  a  sermon  does  not  fail  if  it  teaches  the 
distressed  spirit  to  "  rest  in  the  Lord,  and  wait  patiently 
for  him,"  ^  if  it  induces  the  too  self-sufficient  to  "  be  still, 
and  know  that  God  is  God,"  ^  if  it  persuades  the  man 
who  wants  to  rush  the  kingdom  of  God  that  "  he  that 
believeth  shall  not  make  haste."  ^  A  deeper  confidence 
in  God,  a  fuller  committal  to  Him,  even  if  no  task  is 
assigned,  is  a  worthy  object  of  the  preacher's  endeavour. 
While  one  may  agree  with  Canon  Simpson  that 
"  preaching  is  something  more  than  the  art  of  oratory 
applied  to  religious  themes,"  yet  he  does  limit  its  appeal 
too  narrowly  when  he  declares  that  this  "  is  made  neither 
to  the  intellect,  nor  to  the  emotions,  nor  to  the  aesthetic 
sense,  but  to  what,  however  we  may  account  for  its  exist- 
ence, we  are  accustomed  to  call  the  conscience.  The  power 
of  its  appeal  to  conscience  may  at  once  be  set  down  as  the 
supreme  and  ultimate  test  of  preaching,  for  it  is  this  which 
differentiates  the  pulpit."  *  If  by  conscience  be  meant  the 
moral  sense,  or  the  practical  reason  of  Kant,  the  writer 
may  be  charged,  although  this  is  far  from  his  intention, 
with  repeating  Kant's  mistake  in  regarding  religion  as  the 
apprehension  of  our  moral  duties  as  divine  commands.  The 
pulpit  does  not  merely  summon  to  duty ;  it  may  awaken 

»  Ps  37^.  2  ps  4610 

•  Is  28".  *  Preachers  and  Teachers,  pp.  2,  3. 


14  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

faith  by  the  assurance  of  grace.  If,  as  Luther  taught,  sin 
is  even  more  distrust  of  God  than  disobedience  to  Him,  the 
appeal  of  the  pulpit  may  be  addressed  to  the  religious 
disposition,  and  its  end  is  not  missed  if  a  more  thankful 
and  trustful  mood  is  inspired.  A  sermon  which  so  sets 
forth  God  and  His  grace  that  all  the  hearers  are  awed  with 
adoration  and  gratitude,  is  not  vainly  delivered.  Worship 
may  be,  as  well  as  work,  the  proper  design  of  preaching. 
It  is  the  whole  moral  and  religious  personality  which 
preaching  must  strive  to  reach. 

III. 

1.  So  far  we  have  been  dealing  with  the  definition  of 
preaching  generally ;  we  must  now  attempt  to  describe  the 
characteristics  of  Christian  preaching.  To  the  Christian 
Church  is  committed  not  only  the  task  of  preaching,  but 
also  the  message  to  be  thus  delivered.  The  Christian 
preacher  does  not  discover  or  invent  the  truth  he  imparts 
to  others.  Christian  preaching  is  not  merely  one  of  the 
functions  of  a  human  religion,  it  is  the  continuation  of  the 
divine  revelation,  culminating  in  Christ,  of  which  the  Holy 
Scriptures  are  the  record  and  interpretation.  It  is  not  a 
mere  formality,  although  some  preachers  may  so  regard  it, 
and  chafe  at  being  subject  to  the  custom,  that  the  text 
of  a  sermon  is  taken  from  the  Bible,  for  it  is  the  con- 
fession that  the  preacher  is  perpetuating  and  diffusing  a 
gift  which  God  has  bestowed.  The  common  assumption 
in  the  Christian  Church  is  that  preaching  will  not  be  the 
power  and  the  wisdom  of  God  unto  the  salvation  of  sinners 
and  the  perfecting  of  saints  unless  the  preacher  is  himself 
convinced,  and  can  convince  his  hearers,  that  he  has  a 
message  from  God  to  deliver,  that  his  words  are  not  of  his 
own  invention  and  imagination,  but  are  by  the  inspiration 
of  the  Almighty,  who  hath  given  him  the  understanding 
clearly  to  discern  and  rightly  to  divide  the  Word  of  Life. 
He  must  be  devout  so  as  to  maintain  that  communion  with 
God  by  which  alone  the  vision  of  God  can  be  won.     He 


INTRODUCTION  15 

must  be  scholarly,  not  that  he  may  make  a  parade  of  his 
learning,  or  that  he  may  use  it  to  impose  his  own  authority 
on  others,  but  that  he  may  know  how  to  gain  all  that  the 
Scriptures  are  fitted  to  give  the  diligent  and  sincere 
student.  The  Christian  preacher  is  not  an  explorer  or 
adventurer,  but  a  messenger. 

2.  This  message,  however,  is  not  a  stereotyped  for- 
mula— it  is  a  Gospel  to  be  interpreted  for  the  thought 
and  applied  to  the  need  of  every  age.  Men  are  so  bound 
to  one  another  by  common  needs  and  dangers,  doubts  and 
fears,  wishes  and  aims,  are  so  subject  to  the  same  mental, 
moral,  and  spiritual  conditions  that  for  the  men  of  every 
age  there  is  a  common  interpretation  and  application  which 
has  meaning  and  worth  for  all.  In  every  age  there  are 
general  tendencies  as  there  are  general  necessities.  There 
are  individual  men,  however,  who,  as  it  were,  incarnate  the 
spirit  of  the  age,  and  who  are  thus  specially  fitted  to 
receive  a  message  from  God  which  has  more  than  indi- 
vidual significance  and  value,  and  which,  therefore,  it  will 
be  for  the  advantage  of  others  to  receive  from  them. 
Every  Christian  preacher's  aim  must  be  to  fulfil  this 
demand  to  be  the  channel  between  the  permanent  and 
universal  truth  and  the  local  and  temporary  thought.  As 
the  history  of  Christian  preaching  with  which  we  shall  be 
in  the  first  part  of  this  volume  specially  concerned  will 
abundantly  illustrate,  while  individual  preachers  have  their 
own  peculiarities,  yet  the  preaching  of  each  age  has  its 
common  characteristics.^ 

*  How  necessary  it  is  that  the  preaching  of  each  age  should  be  adapted 
to  its  needs  is  the  theme  of  the  lat<«t  series  of  the  Yale  Lectures  on  Preach- 
ing, entitled  In  a  Day  of  Social  Rebuilding,  by  Henry  Sloane  Coflin,  in 
which  he  faces  the  demands  of  the  Christian  ministry,  with  constant  and 
immediate  reference  to  the  situation  which  has  arisen  throogh  the  war, 
and  its  manifold  results,  mental,  moral,  and  spiritual,  as  well  as  material. 
He  confronts  that  situation  undaunted,  as  every  Christian  preacher  should. 
"Wherever  in  diplomacy,  iu  industry,  in  family  life,  in  the  personal 
dealings  of  man  with  man,  the  spirit  of  Jesus  has  been  dominant,  there  is 
no  sign  of  damage.  We  can  challenge  the  world  to  show  us  the  instance 
where  love  like  Christ's  has  been  employed  in  social  construction  and  has 
£aOed.     True  the  instances  are  pathetically  rare,  but  they  are  none  the  less 


16  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

3.  We  may  now  address  ourselves  to  the  question  how 
the  message,  permanent  and  universal,  entrusted  to  the 
Church,  may  by  the  Christian  preacher  be  adapted  to-day. 
It  is  with  the  Gospel  of  the  grace  of  God  that  the  Church 
is  charged,  and  it  belongs,  therefore,  to  the  permanent  and 
universal  essence  of  the  Christian  message  to  be  evangelical. 
The  conditions  of  the  age  generally,  and  especially  the 
results  of  the  war,  make  a  demand  for,  and  can  offer  a 
special  encouragement  to,  evangelical  preaching.  The  easy 
and  vain  optimism  of  the  earlier  part  of  last  century  is 
becoming  less  common,  and  the  note  of  pessimism  is  more 
often  touched  than  it  was.  In  spite  of  all  mental  advance 
and  material  progress,  the  social  problem  is  more  menacing, 
international  relations  are  more  perilous,  the  moral  impera- 
tive is  less  commanding,  the  soul's  aspirations  fail  of  their 
satisfaction.  Disappointment  and  discontent,  not  to  say 
disgust  and  despair,  are  more  common ;  and  the  world  now 
needs  a  message  of  comfort  and  courage,  help  and  hope. 
That  message  the  Christian  Gospel  offers.  We  must  not 
use  the  term  evangelical  as  the  badge  of  any  sect  or  the 
shibboleth  of  any  school.  Wfiat  have  been  regarded  as 
the  distinctively  evangelical  doctrines  cause  intellectual  dif- 
ficulty to  many  minds ;  and  this  is  not  the  place  to  discuss 
them.  Nevertheless  it  should  be  easier  to-day  to  believe 
in  salvation  by  sacrifice.  AH  the  writer  insists  on  here  is 
that  the  Christian  preacher  should  be  a  bearer  of  good 
news  of  God's  saving  grace  in  Christ,  bringing  men  assur- 
ance of  divine  comfort,  succour,  power,  and  promise.  The 
Christian  Gospel  does  offer  answers  to  the  questions  the 
mind  asks  ;  but  the  speculative  tendency,  which  is  concerned 
mainly  about  the  solution  of  intellectual  problems,  must  be 
a  subordinate  element  in  preaching.  The  practical  ten- 
dency which  thinks  of  Christianity  as  affording  a  supreme 

significant.  The  Church's  failure  is  not  due  to  lack  of  means  with  which  to 
build  an  enduring  world-order,  but  to  their  non-employmeut.  The  disaster 
that  has  ensued  upon  the  use  of  other  means  gives  us  the  chance  to  come 
forward  and  ask  to  be  accorded  a  fair  trial,  and  to  back  up  our  plea  with  a 
reasonable  number  of  cases  where  the  Spirit  of  Christ  has  been  applied 
Bocia.lly  and  has  splendidly  succeeded  "  (pp.  17-18). 


INTRODUCTION  17 

moral  principle  in  the  law  of  love,  and  a  supreme  moral 
example  in  the  character  of  its  Founder,  belongs  neces- 
sarily, as  we  shall  immediately  show,  to  the  Gospel ;  but 
when  detached  from,  or  even  opposed  to  the  evangelical,  it 
fails  adequately  to  realise  that  the  sufficient  moral  motive 
for  the  fulfilment  of  the  law  and  the  following  of  the 
example  is  found  only  in  the  constraint  of  the  love  of 
Christ  and  His  Cross.  The  mystical  tendency  which  finds 
the  highest  good  that  Christianity  ofiers  in  communion 
with  God,  in  devout  meditation  and  emotion,  represents  an 
essential  element  in  the  Christian  life ;  yet  when  it  ignores, 
as  it  sometimes  does,  that  it  is  only  through  the  forgive- 
ness offered  in  the  Gospel  that  the  sinful  soul  can  enjoy 
fellowship  with  God,  and  that  distinctively  Christian  com- 
munion with  God  is  with  the  Father  through  the  Son  in 
the  Spirit,  then  it  does  not  represent  the  complete  Christian 
message.  Evangelical  preaching  may  and  should  recognise 
and  harmonise  all  these  tendencies,  but  can  never  allow  to 
fall  into  the  background  the  fact  of  redemption  in  Jesus 
Christ.  It  is  after  God  as  Comforter,  Helper,  Saviour 
that  the  religions  of  the  world  are  seeking ;  and  Christian- 
ity claims  to  be  the  universal  religion,  because  in  its  Gospel 
it  offers  the  divine  answer  to  the  human  cry.^ 

4.  The  Christian  Gospel  offers,  not  a  doctrine  to  be 
believed,  but  an  experience  to  be  shared.  The  faith  that 
saves  is  not  an  intellectual  assent  to  a  plan  of  salvation, 
or  a  theory  of  atonement,  but  a  personal  confidence  in, 
dependence  on,  submission  to  God  in  Christ,  which  produces 
an  inward  change  of  thought,  feeling,  will.  The  human 
personality  becomes  "a  new  creation." ^  This  does  not 
involve  only  one  type  of  Christian  life ;  but,  however 
manifold  the  types,  common  to  them  all  is  the  work  of  God 
within  each  man.  There  may  be  a  secondary  Christianity 
of  acceptance  of  doctrines,  observance  of  rites,  conformity  to 
customs    in  the  Christian    community ;    but  the  primary 

^  The  writer  has  dealt  more  fully  with  this  subject  in  his  work,  The 
Evangelical  Type  of  Christianity. 
1  2  Co  f.".  Gal  6^^ 


18  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

Christianity  is  always  a  personal  experience  of  God's  grace 
in  Christ.  Accordingly,  Christian  preaching  must  express 
and  appeal  to  experience ;  if  it  is  evangelical,  it  will  also  be 
experimental.  In  this  emphasis  on  experience  the  Christian 
pulpit  to-day  will  be  in  accord  with,  and  not  in  antagonism 
to,  the  spirit  of  the  age.  Modern  science  is  experimental 
in  its  method ;  history  wants  to  get  at  the  facts,  outward 
or  inward;  philosophy  aims  at  interpreting  experience. 
The  attention  being  given  to  religious  psychology  shows 
the  importance  attached  to  the  effect  of  belief  in  life. 
Christian  Apologetics  is  less  and  less  appealing  to  the 
authority  of  the  Bible  or  the  Church,  and  relying  more 
and  more  on  the  testimony  of  experience.  In  the  present 
intellectual  situation,  we  may  confidently  affirm  that  there 
is  no  preaching  which  will  meet  the  needs  of  men  as  that 
which  is  born  of,  and  begets,  experience.  The  Christian 
preacher  must  have  tested  the  value  of  his  message  in  his 
own  life,  so  that  he  can  with  full  confidence  subject  it 
to  its  being  tested  in  like  manner  by  those  who  hear  him. 
Is  not  this  personal  certainty,  and  so  urgency,  wanting  in  a 
good  deal  of  preaching  ?  How  can  a  man  fully  persuade 
others  who  is  not  himself  fully  persuaded  ?  How  can  he 
expect  to  convince  others  of  the  supreme  importance  to 
them  of  a  message  the  value  of  which  he  has  not  in  his 
own  soul  realised,  and  the  authority  of  which  does  not 
dominate  his  whole  personality  ?  Will  not  the  range  of  a 
preacher's  influence  be  measured  by  the  depth  of  his 
experience  ?  For  mighty  preaching  the  Christian  life  of 
some  men  has  been  too  easy.  Born  and  bred,  taught  and 
trained,  in  a  Christian  home,  they  have  gently  and  slowly 
grown  in  the  knowledge  of  the  grace  of  Christ,  and  have 
endured  no  terrible  moral  conflicts,  nor  passed  through  any 
severe  spiritual  crises ;  consequently  there  is  a  wide  range 
of  the  Christian  salvation  beyond  their  own  experience. 
Only  by  greater  intensity  in  their  Christian  living,  and 
wider  sympathy  with  other  lives  more  sternly  tested,  can 
they  transcend  this  disadvantageous  limitation.  For  surely 
only  he  who  has  himself  realised  that  the  only  help  and 


INTRODUCTION  19 

hope  of  men  perishing  is  in  the  Cross  of  Christ,  can  preach 
with  such  force  and  fervour  as  to  arouse  others  to  their 
danger  and  their  need,  and  to  call  forth  their  faith  in  Him 
who  "  is  able  to  save  them  to  the  uttermost  that  come  unto 
God  by  Him."  1 

5.  The  new  creation  of  the  human  personality  by  the 
grace  of  Christ  involves  a  holy  character  as  well  as  a 
blessed  experience.  The  Christian  message  is  ethical  because 
evangelical  and  experimental.  We  may  be  grateful  to 
God  that  this  age  does  not  want  a  Gospel  which  in  the 
slightest  degree  encourages  men  to  "  continue  in  sin,  that 
grace  may  abound " ;  ^  and  that  it  will  show  respect  to 
a  Gospel  which  can  prove  a  greater  power  working  for 
righteousness  than  any  other  form  of  religious  teaching. 
The  Moderates  of  a  previous  century  in  Scotland  were 
blamed  for  preaching  morality.  That  need  not  have  been 
any  reproach  to  them.  And  if  the  Evangelicals  in  any 
degree  neglected  to  preach  morality,  theirs  was  the  shame. 
What  one  could  find  fault  with  in  the  Moderates  was  that 
the  morality  they  preached  was  not  large  and  lofty  enough. 
Had  it  been,  they  would  have  been  compelled  to  preach,  as 
well  as  morality,  the  only  adequate  motive  and  sufficient 
power  for  holy  living,  the  grace  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ. 
The  only  salvation  for  man  that  is  worth  preaching  is 
a  deliverance  from  the  bondage  of  evil,  and  an  endowment 
of  freedom  to  do  right  and  be  good.  It  is  not  in  the 
thoughts  or  feelings,  but  in  the  actions,  that  the  religious 
life  shows  most  decisively  its  sickness  or  health,  its  weak- 
ness or  strength.  If  the  older  evangelicalism  was  some- 
times not  so  distinctly  and  intensely  ethical  as  the  very 
nature  of  the  Christian  salvation  should  have  made  it,  the 
newer  evangelicalism  is  not  likely  to  repeat  the  mistake, 
for  all  the  tendencies  and  necessities  of  the  age  challenge  it 
to  be  passionately  and  consistently  ethical.  It  is  a  stunted, 
a  mutilated  Gospel  which  does  not  demand  and  stimulate  a 
morality  larger  and  loftier  than  any  that  the  mere  moralist 
has  ever  conceived.     Calvary's  ideal  is  greater  and  grander 

^  He  72».  3  Ro  61. 


20  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

than  Sinai's  law  could  be.  This  inward  impulse  meets  an 
outward  demand.  Modern  society  needs  moral  guidance, 
enforced  by  a  religious  sanction,  or,  rather,  inspired  by  a 
religious  motive.  Is  not  Comte's  grotesque  and  yet 
pathetic  attempt  to  make  a  new  religion,  the  Eeligion 
of  Humanity,  a  proof  of  the  insufficiency  of  morality 
without  religion  ?  In  the  Eomanes  Lecture,  Huxley  con- 
fessed that  the  cosmical  process,  as  interpreted  by  science, 
does  not  yield  the  regulative  principles  for  man's  ethical 
progress.  In  all  European  societies  for  more  than  a  century, 
and  for  a  generation  at  least  in  China,  Japan,  India,  moral 
development  has  not  been  keeping  step  with  mental  and 
material,  and  hence  the  social  problem  is  likely  to  become 
ever  more  acute.  Economic  knowledge  and  political 
prudence  are  needed,  as  well  as  moral  judgment  and 
religious  motive.  With  the  former  conditions  the  Christian 
preacher  is  not  directly  concerned ;  but  the  latter  are  his 
pressing  charge.  If  this  problem,  great  as  it  is,  cannot  be 
solved  by  the  consistent  and  courageous  application  of 
Christian  principles,  the  Christian  Church  must  abandon 
its  claim  for  its  Christ  as  "  the  power  and  wisdom  of  God 
unto  salvation."  This  modern  challenge  of  the  authority 
and  sufficiency  of  His  message  must  be  accepted  by  the 
Christian  preacher. 

6.  The  world  situation  to-day  calls  for  the  realisation 
of  the  Christian  ideal,  not  only  within  each  nation  in  the 
solution  of  its  social  problem,  but,  if  this  attempt  is  to 
have  any  chance  of  success,  in  the  relation  of  nations  to 
one  another.  Christianity  offers  a  universal  morality,  from 
the  claims  and  duties  of  which  no  race,  nation,  or  tribe  can 
be  excluded ;  for  all  these  divisions  of  men,  as  limitations 
of  the  range  of  obligation,  have  been  abolished  in  the  one 
humanity,  loved  of  the  Father,  redeemed  by  the  grace  of  the 
Son,  and  inhabited  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  If  the  proposed 
League  of  Nations  is  not  to  remain  a  mechanism  with  no 
driving  power,  the  Christian  Church  must  preach  a  new 
internationalism  as  the  application  in  politics  of  the  Chris- 
tian universalism.     To  the  Christian  preacher  is  given  a 


INTRODUCTION  21 

wider  range  of  influence,  if  he  has  only  the  wisdom  and 
courage  to  use  to  the  full  the  opportunity  that  is  offered  by 
the  age  still  under  the  shadow  of  the  world-war,  and  eager 
to  escape  into  the  light  of  a  world-peace.  The  angel  song 
must  ring  from  all  Christian  pulpits  :  "  Peace  on  earth 
to  men  of  good  will."  This  indeed  to-day  will  be  "  good 
tidings  of  great  joy  to  all  peoples."  ^ 


PART   I. 
THE   HISTORY  OF   PREACHING. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

1 .  The  best  approach  to  any  subject  is  by  its  history ; 
if  it  be  a  science,  we  must  learn  all  we  can  about  previous 
discoveries ;  if  an  art,  about  previous  methods.  The  Chris- 
tian preacher  will  be  better  equipped  for  his  task  to-day, 
if  he  has  some  knowledge  of  how  men  have  preached  in 
former  days.  He  will  also  be  inspired  by  the  value  of 
the  vocation  he  has  accepted  in  discovering  how  prominent 
a  place  has  been  filled,  and  how  important  a  part  has  been 
played  in  human  history  for  the  furtherance  of  men's  pro- 
gress in  morals  and  piety  by  the  preacher.  While  in 
preaching  even,  as  in  human  activities  of  less  moment, 
there  are  fashions  of  the  hour  which  it  would  be  folly  to 
reproduce  when  they  have  fallen  out  of  date,  yet  there  are 
abiding  aims  and  rules  of  preaching,  which  must  be  taken 
account  of  in  each  age,  and  which  can  be  learned  by  the 
study  of  the  preaching  of  the  past.  Admiration  of  the 
great  and  the  good,  even  without  imitation,  makes  a  man 
wiser  and  better ;  and  the  Christian  preacher  will  enrich 
his  own  manhood  by  intimacy  with  those  in  whose  worthy 
succession  he  stands.  While  all  antiquated  methods,  "  good 
customs  which  corrupt  the  world,"  must  be  laid  aside,  and 
the  preacher  to-day  must  adapt  himself  to  his  age,  he  will 
be  least  in  bondage  to  the  past,  who  is  least  ignorant  of  it, 
and  he  will  be  most  master  of  the  present  whose  know- 
ledge is  least  confined  to  it.     Accordingly  of  the  science 

22 


INTRODUCTORY  23 

and  art  of  homiletics  the  history  of  preaching  is  an  essen- 
tial division,^ 

2.  But  the  subject  may  be  treated  in  two  ways.  The 
history  of  preaching  may  become  little  more  than  a  series 
of  biographies  of  preachers ;  and  the  reader  may  be  over- 
whelmed by  a  multitude  of  dates,  facts,  and  names.  This 
is  not  the  method  which  will  be  here  pursued.  The  bio- 
graphical interest  will  be  subordinated  to  the  typical.  It  is 
with  preaching  that  we  are  concerned — the  functions  it  has 
fulfilled,  the  phases  through  which  it  has  passed,  the  forms 
which  it  has  assumed,  the  purposes  it  has  set  before  itself, 
and  the  methods  it  has  adopted.  Preachers  will  be  dealt 
with,  not  according  to  their  individual  importance,  but 
according  to  their  relative  significance  in  these  respects, 
although  often  these  points  of  view  may  coincide.  In  the 
titles  of  the  chapters  no  exhaustive  account  of  the  character 
of  the  preaching  of  any  period  will  be  attempted,  but  rather 
the  throwing  into  prominence  of  the  distinctive  type. 
When  the  first  of  the  methods  of  treatment  is  adopted,  it 
is  often  difficult  to  see  the  wood  for  the  trees;  in  the 
second  method,  the  reader  may  sometimes  miss  the  sight  of 
a  favourite  tree  in  all  its  stately  proportions,  but  it  is 
hoped  he  will  carry  away  a  wider  view  of  the  abundance, 
variety,  and  value  of  the  timber  in  the  forest  as  a  whole. 

3.  Had  limits  of  space  permitted,  the  writer  would 
have  included  a  chapter  on  Hebrew  prophecy,  and  another 
on  preaching  in  other  religions.  He  must,  however,  con- 
tent himself  with  calling  attention  to  the  altogether  unique 
importance  of  the  Hebrew  prophet,  in  his  preaching,  as  an 
agent  of  divine  revelation.  The  subject  has  been  dealt 
with  by  a  master-hand  in  the  article  on  "  Prophecy  and 
Prophets "  of  the  late  Dr.  A.  B.  Davidson,  in  Hastings' 
Bible  Dictionary,  iv.  pp.  106—127.  The  founders  of 
Confucianism,  Buddhism,  Zoroastrianism,  and  Islam  all 
accomplished  their  task  as  teachers  and  preachers,  varied 
as  were  the  forms  of  their  instruction.  In  this  connection, 
mention  should  be  made  of  Socrates,  who,  though  he  founded 

*  See  Dale's  Nine  Lectures  on  Preaching,  pp.  93-94. 


24  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

no  religion,  did  initiate  a  movement  of  human  thought  of 
profound  significance  for  morals  and  religion.  His  twofold 
method  of  feigning  his  own  ignorance  and  leading  others  to 
discover  theirs,  on  the  one  hand,  and,  on  the  other,  of 
eliciting  by  his  questions  the  thoughts  of  others  so  as  to 
disclose  the  truth,  is  one  deserving  careful  study  by  the 
Christian  preacher.  The  history  of  Christian  preaching 
must  begin  with  Him  who  is  both  the  model  and  the 
message,  Jesus  Christ  the  Lord, 


CHAPTER  I. 

JESUS  CHRIST  THE  LORD. 
I. 

1.  In  no  other  religion  is  the  position  of  the  founder 
comparable  with  that  of  Jesus  in  Christianity.  Confucius 
was  the  editor  of  the  ancient  classics,  and  the  interpreter 
of  the  ancestral  wisdom  of  his  people.  Gautama  the 
Buddha  had  discovered  the  secret  of  salvation  for  himself, 
and  he  imparted  it  to  others ;  but  he  did  not  offer  himself 
as  Saviour,  as  each  man  must  follow  the  path  of  deliver- 
ance for  himself.  Mohammed  was  the  prophet  of  Allah, 
in  whose  name  and  by  whose  authority  he  taught  and 
ruled ;  but  he  claimed  no  more  intimate  relation  to  God. 
But  Jesus  is  Himself  the  object  of  the  Christian  faith  as 
the  Divine  Saviour  and  Lord.  He  not  only  reveals  God's 
Fatherhood,  but  is  Himself  the  Son  alone  knowing  God, 
and  known  of  God,  as  no  other  man  can  be ;  and  so 
uniquely  qualified  by  His  nature  for  His  function.^  He 
does  not  discover  and  then  impart  to  others  a  secret  of 
salvation,  a  salvation  resulting  from  man's  own  efibrt ;  but 
in  His  death  and  rising  again  He  realises  on  behalf  of  man 
a  salvation  which  men  receive  and  possess  by  faith  in 
Him.  He  does  not  present  a  law,  a  standard,  an  ideal 
above  and  beyond  His  own  character,  but  in  His  own 
character.  Here  founder  and  religion  are  one  as  nowhere 
else. 

2.  In  the  Apostolic  Witness,  especially  that  of  Paul, 
the  significance  and  value  for  the  Christian  faith  of  Christ 
Himself  is  concentrated  in  the  Cross   and   Resurrection.^ 

iMtll25-w  »lCol5»-». 

85 


26  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

If  not  ignorant  of,  or  indifferent  to,  the  earthly  ministry  of 
healing  and  teaching,  the  apostles  in  their  writings  do  not 
give  to  it  any  prominence.  Nevertheless,  we  must  not 
dismiss  the  teaching  of  Jesus,  with  which  we  are  here 
specially  concerned,  as  an  unimportant  factor  in  the  found- 
ing of  the  Christian  Church.  For,  firstly,  the  existence  of 
the  Gospels  shows  that  the  apostolic  speeches  and  letters 
do  not  give  us  a  complete  representation  of  the  thought 
and  life  of  the  first  community  of  beUevers,  of  all  that  was 
of  interest  to  it,  and  of  influence  in  it.  The  words  of 
Jesus  were  cherished,  prized,  preserved,  and  diffused  first 
in  speech,  then  in  writing.  Probably  there  was  a  primitive 
piety  which,  as  the  Epistle  of  James  shows,  was  more  at 
home  in  these  reports  of  Jesus  than  in  the  doctrines  of  the 
apostles.^  Secondly,  had  the  teaching  of  Jesus  not  gathered 
a  company  of  disciples,  there  had  been  no  united  witness  to 
His  resurrection,  and  no  common  teaching  of  the  meaning 
and  worth  of  His  death.  The  earthly  Teacher  had  pre- 
pared for  the  heavenly  Lord.  Thirdly,  the  facts  of  the 
Crucifixion  and  of  the  Kesurrection  would  be  meaningless 
apart  from  the  person  of  Jesus  Himself,  which  has  first  to 
be  apprehended  in  its  historical  reality  before  it  can  be 
conceived  in  its  doctrinal  significance.  Could  we  properly 
construe  the  meaning  of  the  Atonement  in  the  Cross  were 
we  ignorant  of  the  revelation  of  the  Fatherhood  of  God 
Jesus  had  given,  or  the  realisation  of  perfect  manhood  as 
divine  sonship  He  had  won  ?  Fourthly,  that  teaching 
itself  about  God,  man,  sin,  forgiveness,  duty,  immortality 
could  seem  secondary  in  importance  and  influence  to  His 
Cross  and  Kesurrection  only  to  one  whom  a  theological 
obsession  had  made  insensitive  to  moral  and  religious 
values.  But  to  contrast  and  oppose  the  one  to  the  other 
is  to  rend  the  inner  garment  woven  of  one  piece  through- 
out. Fifthly,  it  can  be  confidently  said  that  to-day  the 
teaching  of  Jesus  still  holds  with  an  irresistible  influence 
many  for  whom  the  apostolic  teaching  has  lost  much  of  its 

1  James  has  more  echoes  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  than  any  other 
apostolic  writing. 


JESUS  CHRIST  THE  LORD  27 

authority.  We  may  regret  it  as  much  as  we  will,  but  the 
fact  remains  as  a  reason  why  we  should  try  to  apprehend 
as  accurately  and  appreciate  as  adequately  as  we  can,  Jesus 
as  Teacher. 

3,  In  dealing  with  the  teaching  of  Jesus,  we  are 
confronted  with  a  difficulty  at  the  very  outset.  Just  as 
we  have  in  Xenophon's  Memorabilia  and  in  Plato's 
Dialogues  complementary  representations  of  the  teaching 
of  Socrates,  so  in  the  Synoptic  and  Johannine  reports  of 
the  ministry  of  Jesus.  Although  each  of  the  Synoptic 
Gospels  has  its  own  distinctive  features,  yet  so  much 
of  the  material  is  drawn  from  common  sources,  and  the 
standpoints  are  so  similar,  that  we  are  warranted,  in  a 
general  treatment  of  the  character  of  Jesus'  teaching,  in 
regarding  the  Synoptic  representation  as  one  in  contrast 
with  the  Johannine.  In  a  detailed  study  of  the  content  of 
the  teaching,  we  should  need  to  take  account  of  the 
editorial  peculiarities  of  Matthew  and  Luke  in  dealing 
with  their  common  sources ;  but  for  the  present  purpose 
this  is  quite  unnecessary.  It  is  generally  agreed  among 
scholars  that  the  Fourth  Gospel  is  of  later  date  than  any 
of  the  Synoptics,  and  that,  even  if  the  authorship  of  an 
eye-witness  be  admitted,  the  original  reminiscences  have 
been  to  so  great  an  extent  affected  by  his  subsequent 
reflections  that  it  is  a  very  difficult  and  delicate  task  to 
discover  in  these  reports  the  teaching  of  Jesus  just  as  He 
gave  it.*  We  cannot,  therefore,  follow  the  lead  of  the 
Fourth  Gospel  as  we  can  take  the  guidance  of  the 
Synoptics  as  regards  the  manner  and  the  method  of  the 
teaching  of  Jesus.  While  we  need  not  ignore  nor  refuse 
what  the  Fourth  Gospel  offers  to  us,  yet,  when  we  are  seek- 
ing to  determine  with  such  accuracy  and  adequacy  as  is 
possible  to  us  with  the  data  at  our  disposal  the  character- 
istics of  Jesus  as  Teacher,  the  Synoptics  alone  can  give  us 
our  guiding  principles,  while  the  Fourth  Gospel  may  offer 
supplementary  and  confirmatory  illustration  of  these  prin- 
ciples. This  critical  excursion  has  been  as  brief  as  possible. 
^  Th«  writer  has  attempted  this  in  The  Expositor,  8th  Series,  vii.  and  riii. 


28  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

4.  Even  although  the  present  volume  is  on  preaching,  it 
is  advisable  to  treat  in  this  chapter  Jesus  as  Teacher,  as 
the  greater  part  of  His  teaching  cannot  be  properly 
described  as  preaching,  and  yet  is  full  of  instruction  for  the 
Christian  preacher.  It  was  seldom  that  He  delivered  a 
formal  sermon.  While  probably  in  the  Sermon  on  the 
Mount  there  is  one  discourse  as  the  nucleus  round  which 
the  evangelist,  in  accordance  with  his  usual  practice,  has 
collected  matter  belonging  to  many  different  occasions,  chaps. 
5  and  6  may  be  taken,  with  some  additions,  as  reporting 
that  discourse,  of  which  the  parable  in  7^*'^^  was  probably 
the  closing  warning.  We  have  here  more  evidence  of 
systematic  treatment  of  a  subject  than  anywhere  else  in 
the  Gospels ;  the  series  of  contrasts  between  the  old  law 
and  the  new,  followed  by  the  series  of  criticisms  of 
Pharisaic  piety,  is  not  at  all  characteristic  of  Jesus'  usual 
method.  Much  of  His  teaching  was  given  in  wayside  or 
table-talk,  in  answer  to  questions,  or  in  connection  with 
His  miracles.  It  consisted  of  single  sayings,  instances, 
illustrations,  parables,  rather  than  any  sustained  argument. 
Emphasis  was  gained  by  repetition  of  the  same  thought 
under  different  figures ;  complementary  aspects  of  truth 
were  presented  by  means  of  twin  parables.  Spontaneity, 
and  not  formality,  is  the  distinctive  feature ;  and  one  may 
ask  if  Christian  preaching  might  not  have  gained  much  by 
being  less  rhetorical  and  more  natural  speech. 

II. 

In  attempting  to  describe  the  characteristics  of  the 
teaching  of  Jesus,  it  would  be  easy  to  fill  many  pages  with 
the  tributes  which  have  been  freely  offered  to  the  supreme 
excellence  of  Jesus  as  Teacher.  But  when  we  have  said, 
not  that  He  is  above  all  other  teachers,  for  that  would 
imply  a  possibility  of  comparison,  but  that  there  is  none 
like  Him,  so  that  comparison  seems  irrelevant,  not  to  say 
impertinent,  need  we  multiply  our  words  to  gild  the 
unalloyed  gold  of  our  gratitude,  reverence,  and  devotion  ? 


JESUS   CHRIST  THE   LORD  29 

Is  He  not  too  great  for  our  praise  ?  Instead  of  praising 
Him  who  is  beyond  all  praise,  let  us  rather  as  simply, 
clearly,  and  fully  as  we  can  describe  His  distinctive 
features  as  a  Teacher.  While  the  evangelists,  as  a  rule, 
present  the  ministry  of  Jesus  to  us  without  explanation  or 
commendation,  leaving  their  record  to  make  its  own 
impression,  yet  there  are  in  the  Gospels  sayings  about  the 
teaching  which  are  of  incalculable  value  in  enabling  us  to 
understand  its  manner  and  its  method.  We  are  sometimes 
allowed  to  become  bystanders,  and  to  witness  directly  the 
impression  the  teaching  made  on  those  who  first  of  all 
heard  the  words  of  the  eternal  life. 

1.  Jesus'  discourse  in  the  synagogue  of  Capernaum  on 
the  first  Sabbath  of  His  ministry,  as  recorded  by  the 
Synoptists,  astonished  His  hearers ;  "  for  He  taught  them 
as  having  authority,  and  not  as  the  scribes."  *  Bruce  thus 
explains  the  statement : 

"  It  is  an  ethical,  not  an  artistic  or  aesthetical,  contrast 
that  is  intended.  The  scribes  spake  by  authority,  resting 
all  they  said  on  tradition  of  what  had  been  said  before. 
Jesus  spake  with  authority,  out  of  His  own  soul,  with  direct 
intuition  of  truth ;  and,  therefore,  to  the  answering  soul 
of  His  hearers.  The  people  could  not  quite  explain  the 
difference,  but  that  was  what  they  obscurely  felt."  2 

The  authority  of  Jesus  was  grounded  in  His  personality ; 
His  moral  discernment  was  due  to  His  perfect  moral 
character,  and  His  spiritual  vision  to  His  unbroken  com- 
munion with  God.  He  Himself  discloses  the  secret  in  the 
confession  regarding  Himself,  which  is  unique  in  the 
Synoptic  Gospels.^  As  the  Son  alone  knowing  and  known 
of  the  Father,  He  alone  can  reveal  Him  unto  men  ;  and 
He  graciously  offers  that  revelation  in  His  teaching  and  His 
companionship,  in  lowliness  and  meekness  of  heart,  as  the 
secret  of  rest  to  all  to  whom  the  moral  task  and  the 
religious  trust  present  an  unsolved  problem.  The  perfect 
goodness  and  godliness  for  which  men  aspire  is  reality  in 

^  Mk  1^.  2  Expositor's  Greek  Testament,  i.  p.  136. 

3Mtll2T-i». 


30  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

His  character  and  the  consciousness.  His  word  had  abso- 
lute authority  alike  in  criticism  of  the  Old  Testament 
or  censure  of  the  scribes  and  Pharisees  as  in  bringing 
penitent  and  believing  souls  to  God,  because  it  expressed 
moral  and  spiritual  reality  as  ultimate  as  God  Himself,  to 
whom  He  was  related  in  constant  dependence,  and  absolute 
submission  as  well  as  immediate  contact  and  intimate  com- 
munion. God  spake  and  wrought  in  Him,  for  He  said  and 
did  only  what,  and  as  God  taught  Him,  and  gave  to  Him. 
It  was  the  authority  of  humility,  and  not  vanity. 

2.  The  crowds  which  heard  Jesus  were  no  less  im- 
pressed by  the  novelty  of  the  doctrine  than  the  authority  of 
the  teacher.     They  testified  that  it  was  "  a  new  teaching."  ^ 

(1)  By  gathering  together  similar  sayings  from  various 
sources,  some  scholars  have  attempted  to  challenge  the 
originality  of  Jesus.  Indeed,  the  fashion  of  the  hour  is 
to  make  Him  as  completely  as  possible  only  an  echo  of 
His  own  age  and  surroundings.  But  even  were  the  resem- 
blances between  what  Jesus  and  other  teachers  have  said 
more  numerous  and  exact,  we  need  not  reverse  the  judg- 
ment of  His  first  hearers.  Had  He  never  said  anything 
which  some  one  had  said  before,  where  would  have  been  the 
points  of  contact  with  the  human  reason  or  conscience  on 
which  educationalists  insist  to-day  as  a  primary  condition 
of  intelligibility  ?  Had  no  gleams  of  the  light  from  God 
which  shone  so  steadily  in  Him  broken  through  man's 
darkness,  in  the  teaching  of  others,  how  could  we  have 
maintained  our  belief  that  God  has  had  His  witness  in  all 
lands  and  ages  ?  If,  instead  of  comparing  detached  utter- 
ances of  Jesus  with  sayings  of  others,  we  take  His  teaching 
as  a  whole — and  it  should  be  always  so  taken,  since  a  moral 
and  spiritual  unity  pervades  it — it  can  be  confidently 
maintained  that  there  is  no  other  body  of  thought,  Jewish 
or  pagan,  which  can  come  into  comparison  with  it.  Its 
novelty  must  be  judged  relatively  to  the  thought  and  life 
around  the  teacher,  the  contemporary  Judaism,  for  by  that 
alone  could  Jesus  Himself  be  directly  influenced.     Would 

1  Mk  V". 


JESUS  CHRIST   THE   LORD  .    31 

He  have  provoked  such  misunderstanding,  distrust,  anger, 
and  hate  in  so  many  of  His  hearers  had  He  been  simply- 
repeating  the  familiar  ideas  ?  His  conception  of  God  as 
Father,  His  conjoining  of  absolute  love  to  God  and  equal 
love  to  self  and  neighbour  as  the  highest  commandment 
fulfilling  the  whole  law,  the  inwardness  of  the  moral  and 
religious  life  on  which  He  insisted,  the  universality  of  God's 
goodness  and  consequently  of  man's  duty  He  enjoined,  the 
assurance  of  forgiveness  of  sin  He  offered,  the  faith  in  God's 
grace  He  required  of  man — all  these  are  instances  of  the 
originality  of  His  teaching. 

(2)  But  this  novelty  was  not  innovation.  There 
was  continuity  between  His  revelation  of  God  and 
that  contained  in  the  Old  Testament ;  He  nourished 
His  own  life  in  God  on  these  sacred  Scriptures.  He 
did  not  destroy,  but  fulfilled  the  law  and  the  prophets ; 
but  this  fulfilment  was  not  repetition,  but  completion.^ 
The  contrasts  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  show  how  far 
the  life  to  which  He  called  men  transcended  the  law ;  and 
His  own  life  and  work,  how  far  He  Himself  transcended 
the  prophecy  which  He  thus  fulfilled. 

3.  Luke,  in  carrying  out  the  plan  of  his  Gospel, 
begins  the  record  of  the  public  ministry  with  an  account 
of  the  visit  to  the  synagogue  of  Nazareth,  which  the  other 
Synoptists  place  at  a  later  date.  The  impression  made  by 
the  discourse  he  describes  in  the  words,  "  And  all  bare  Him 
witness,  and  wondered  at  the  words  of  grace  which  pro- 
ceeded out  of  His  mouth."  ^  Bruce's  comment  here  again 
deserves  quotation : 

"  Most  take  %a/3t?  here  not  in  the  Pauline  sense,  but  as 
denoting  attractiveness  in  speech,  ...  In  view  of  the  text  on 
which  Jesus  preached,  and  the  fact  that  the  Nazareth  incident 
occupies  the  place  of  a  frontispiece  in  the  Gospel,  the  re- 
ligious Pauline  sense  of  ^apt?  is  probably  the  right  one,= 
words  about  the  grace  of  God  whereby  the  prophetic  oracle 
read  was  fulfilled.  .  .  .  Words  of  grace  about  grace ;  such 
was  Christ's  speech,  then  and  always — that  is  Luke's  idea."  ^ 

»  Mt  5"-*.  '  422.  »  Expositor's  Greek  Testament,  vol.  i.  p.  490. 


32  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

(1)  The  Fatherhood  of  God,  the  infinite  worth  of  the 
human  soul,  God's  sorrow  in  the  loss  and  joy  in  the  recovery 
of  the  sinner,  the  forgiveness  of  sin,  the  peace  of  God,  the 
salvation  from  the  power  and  love  of  sin,  the  assurance  of 
a  blessed  and  glorious  immortality — all  that  is  included  in 
the  grace  Jesus  taught  so  graciously.  Reserving  for  further 
comment  what  is  suggested  about  the  manner  of  the  teach- 
ing, we  may  fitly  emphasise  that  grace,  in  as  full  a  sense  as 
Paul  ever  used  the  term,  was  ever  the  matter  of  the 
teaching  of  Jesus,  and  His  own  attitude  to  sinners  con- 
firmed His  teaching.  His  tenderness,  gentleness,  kindness, 
and  forbearance  made  Him  the  living  commentary  of  what 
grace  is,  suffers,  and  does.  But  this  grace  was  not 
amiability  or  good-nature  merely ;  it  was  not  tolerance  for, 
or  indifference  to,  sin,  but  compassion  and  solicitude  for 
sinners,  which  went  as  far  as  the  giving  of  Himself  as  a 
ransom  for  many.  His  Cross  is  the  soul  of  all  His  teach- 
ing of  grace. 

(2)  With  His  grace  there  was  conjoined  severity, 
a  combination  suggested  by  the  varying  estimates  of 
Him  as  Jeremiah  or  Elijah.  His  condemnation  of  the 
scribes  and  Pharisees  was  scathing ;  and  their  offence  was 
not  only  their  hypocrisy,  but  still  more  the  difficulty  they 
put  in  the  way  of  those  who  were  looking  to  them  for 
guidance  in  goodness  and  godliness.  His  severity  to  these 
teachers  and  leaders  was  the  obverse  of  His  solicitude  for 
the  common  people.  He  did  not  join  in  the  common  cry 
against  the  fallen  and  outcast,  but  His  judgment  fell  on 
those  whom  the  world  as  well  as  their  own  conscience 
approved.  The  earthly  ministry  even  gives  meaning  to  so 
paradoxical  a  phrase  as  "  the  wrath  of  the  Lamb." 

4.  The  teaching  of  Jesus.,  because  of  the  grace  of  its 
matter,  was  attractive  to  the  multitudes.  This  the  Gospels 
abundantly  prove,  even  if  Mark's  comment,  "  the  common 
people  heard  him  gladly,"  ^  taken  in  its  context  does  not 
refer  directly  to  this  common  feature,  but  only  to  His  skill 
in  controversy,  as  Bruce  maintains. 

'12". 


JESUS   CHRIST   THE   LORD  33 

"  The  masses  enjoyed  Christ's  victory  over  the  classes, 
who  one  after  the  other  measured  their  wits  against  His. 
The  remark  is  true  to  the  life.  The  people  gladly  hear  one 
who  speaks  felicitously,  refutes  easily,  and  escapes  dexter- 
ously from  the  hands  of  designing  men."  ^ 

(1)  While  this  suggestion  partly  accounts  for  the  popu- 
larity of  Jesus,  yet  that  was  mainly  due  to  the  good  news 
of  gi'ace  He  brought  to  those  whom  the  authorised  teachers 
treated  with  contempt,  and  on  whom  they  sought  to  lay 
burdens  grievous  to  be  borne,  to  the  gracious  manner  in 
which  He  ever  bore  Himself  towards  them,  as  well  as 
to  the  wisdom  and  the  skill  of  His  method  of  teaching. 

(2)  While  Jesus  in  the  parable  of  the  Sower  gave  an 
estimate  of  His  own  ministry,  in  which  He  recognised  the 
only  partial  results  of  His  efforts,  yet  His  teaching  was 
effective  as  well  as  attractive.  He  had  not  only  charm, 
but  what  is  sometimes  lacking  along  with  charm,  power. 
Even  if  in  Lk  4^^  we  must  render  "  His  word  was  with 
authority"  (E.V.),  "not  power"  (A.V.),  yet  v}^  tells  us 
that  "Jesus  returned  in  the  power  of  the  Spirit  into 
Galilee.  .  .  .  And  He  taught  in  their  synagogues,  being 
glorified  of  all." 

"  This  power,"  says  Dr.  Stalker,  "  was  the  result  of  that 
unction  of  the  Holy  One,  without  which  even  the  most 
solemn  truths  fall  on  the  ear  without  effect.  He  was  filled 
with  the  Spirit  without  measure.  Therefore  the  truth 
possessed  Him,  It  burned  and  swelled  in  His  own  bosom, 
and  He  spoke  it  forth  from  heart  to  heart.  He  had  the 
Spirit  not  only  in  such  degree  as  to  fill  Himself,  but  so  as 
to  be  able  to  impart  it  to  others.  It  overflowed  with  His 
words  and  seized  the  souls  of  His  hearers,  filling  with 
enthusiasm  the  mind  and  the  heart."  ^ 

If  we  consider  the  contrast  between  His  truth  and  grace 
and  the  moral  and  religious  life  of  His  age  and  surround- 
ings, we  must  recognise  how  great  must  have  been  both  the 
charm  and  the  power  of  the  Teacher  who  could  draw  so 
many  to  Himself  and  lift  them  so  far  above  themselves. 

^  Expositor's  Greek  Testament,  vol.  i.  p.  426. 
'  The  Life  of  Jesus  Christ,  pp.  67,  68. 


34  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

5.  Having  iDdicated  the  fact  of  the  attractiveness  of 
the  teaching  of  Jesus,  we  may  now  look  more  closely 
at  the  reason  for  it  in  the  method  of  His  teaching. 
(1)  It  was  occasional,  called  forth  by  and  adapted  to  the 
questions,  needs,  or  dangers  of  the  moment,  the  interests 
and  capacities  of  His  hearers ;  and  yet  it  was  not  ephemeral, 
for  it  was  eternal  truth  and  grace  which  met  the  temporal 
occasion.  The  teaching  was  for  the  most  part  appropriate, 
but  always  elevated  and  never  trivial  conversation,  leading 
men  out  of  the  common  life  of  the  world  into  the  presence 
of  God  Himself.  (2)  The  two  excellences  of  this  method 
have  been  stated  by  Wendt  in  words  worth  quoting : 

"  By  this  method  of  meeting  the  want  of  the  occasion, 
Jesus  has  been  able  to  impart  two  weighty  qualities  to  His 
utterances  and  His  instruction — viz..  popular  intelligibility 
and  impressive  pregnancy.  The  importance  lies  in  the  union 
of  these  two  qualities.  A  mode  of  teaching  which  aims  at 
popular  intelligibility  is  exposed  to  the  risk  of  degenerating 
into  platitude  and  triviality ;  and  one  which  aims  at  preg- 
nant brevity  easily  becomes  stilted  and  obscure.  But  Jesus 
perfectly  combined  the  two  qualities,  and  by  this  very  means 
attained  a  peculiar  and  classic  beauty  of  style.  All  the 
characteristic  qualities  and  methods  observable  in  His  style 
can  be  classed  under  the  head  of  means  for  obtaining  those 
two  special  excellences."  ^ 

Holding  over  the  discussion  in  detail  of  the  method  of 
Jesus,  we  may  here  lay  emphasis  on  the  fact  that  Jesus  so 
taught  that  He  could  be  readily  apprehended  by  the  multi- 
tude, but  could  not  be  fully  comprehended  even  by  the 
disciples.  So  apparently  simple.  His  teaching  was  really 
profound.  Men  received  from  Him  as  much  as  at  the 
time  they  could  accept,  but  in  such  a  form  that,  with  the 
development  of  their  capacity  for,  there  would  be  increase 
of  their  possession  of  the  truth  He  taught.  There  was  not 
only  open  speech,  but  also  reserve  and  suggestiveness  of 
utterance.  The  parable  of  the  Sower  not  only  shows  that 
there  must  be  prepared  soil  as  well  as  selected  seed ;  but 
suggests,  contrary  to  the  natural  analogy,  which  must 
*  The  Teaching  of  Jesus,  vol.  i.  p.  109. 


JESTTS  CHRIST  THE   LORD  35 

always  fall  short  of  the  spiritual  reality,  that  the  lodgment 
of  the  selected  seed  is  a  condition  of  the  prepared  soil.  The 
truth  imperfectly  apprehended  prepares  for  its  own  perfect 
comprehension.  We  may  legitimately  press  the  natural 
analogy  in  Wendt's  term  pregnancy,  The  multitude  could 
not  receive  the  entire  truth  taught  in  the  parables,  even  as 
the  disciples,  when  the  parable  was  explained  to  them, 
could.  "  Therefore  speak  I  to  them  in  parables :  because 
seeing  they  see  not ;  and  hearing  they  hear  not,  neither 
do  they  understand."  ^  The  parable  did  teach  them  some- 
thing, if  not  all ;  it  might  even  awaken  a  deeper  interest, 
which  would  at  last  result,  for  some  at  least,  in  a  fuller 
intelligence.  This  interest  and  intelligence  Jesus  took  for 
granted  in  His  disciples,  favoured  with  His  closer  com- 
panionship. "  Blessed  are  your  eyes,  for  they  see ;  and 
your  ears,  for  they  hear."  ^  Yet,  even  the  disciples  often 
failed  to  understand ;  and  with  them  also  Jesus  had  to 
exercise  a  reserve.  He  did  not  declare  His  Messiahship  till 
they  were  able  to  discover  it  by  God's  enlightening  on  His 
teaching  and  life ;  He  did  not  speak  openly  about  His 
passion  till  after  His  Messiahship  had  been  confessed,  and 
even  then  the  disciples  were  not  prepared  for  the  dis- 
closure.^ Only  after  the  Resurrection  were  some  of  His 
sayings  understood.  In  considering  Him  as  a  Teacher  we 
must  remember  His  withholding  as  well  as  imparting. 
The  scholar  limits  the  teacher,  and  so  defines  the  method. 
Does  not  this  consideration  suggest  the  possibility  that 
Jesus  in  His  earthly  life  was  never  able  to  complete  His 
revelation,  because  not  only  the  multitude,  but  even  the 
disciples,  were  not  able  to  receive  it  ?  Hence  His  teaching 
is  continued  and  completed  in  the  enlightening  of  the  Spirit 
of  truth. 

III. 

We  are  so  impressed  by  the  moral  value  and  the 
religious  significance  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  that  we  are 
apt  to  ignore  its  intellectual  ability.     This  was  especially 


36  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

shown  in  His  skill  in  controversy.  We  have  already  com- 
mented on  the  saying,  "  The  common  people  heard  Him 
gladly."  A  similar  impression  of  knowledge  and  skill  was 
made  in  the  synagogue  in  Nazareth  :  "  Many  hearing  Him 
were  astonished,  saying,  '  Whence  hath  this  man  these 
things  ? '  and,  '  What  is  the  wisdom  that  is  given  unto  this 
man  ? '"  ^  Jesus  could  use  the  Scriptures  even  better 
than  the  scribes  could.  While  spiritual  vision  and  moral 
discernment  were  the  primary  qualifications  of  Jesus  as  a 
Teacher,  yet  He  would  not  have  produced  so  great  an 
impression  as  He  did  had  not  these  excellences  been  con- 
joined with  a  capable  mind,  quickness  and  sureness  of 
thought,  readiness  and  resource  in  speech  as  well.  This 
gave  Him  success  in  controversy ;  "  No  man  after  that 
durst  ask  Him  any  question."  ^  And  it  was  important 
that  He  should  so  triumph  over  His  opponents.  Yet  this 
is  not  the  side  of  His  ministry  on  which  we  love  to  linger, 
but  rather  on  the  words  in  which  truth  and  grace  were 
expressed  to  draw  and  win  men  to  Himself. 

1.  The  teaching  of  Jesus  was  generally  given  in  pithy, 
pointed,  clear,  and  forceful  sayings.  It  was  with  Him 
multum  in  parvo.  Of  these  sayings  Dr.  Stalker  has 
fittingly  said : 

"  They  are  simple,  felicitous,  and  easily  remembered ; 
yet  every  one  of  them  is  packed  full  of  thought,  and  the 
longer  you  brood  over  it  the  more  do  you  see  in  it.  It  is 
like  a  pool  so  clear  and  sunny  that  it  seems  quite  shallow, 
till,  thrusting  in  your  stick  to  touch  the  pebbles  so  clearly 
visible  at  the  bottom,  you  discover  that  its  depth  far  exceeds 
what  you  are  trying  to  measure  it  with."  ^ 

Many  of  the  sayings  have  the  characteristics  of  popular 
proverbs,  easily  remembered,  and  always  suggesting  more 
than  they  express.  Antithesis,  epigram,  paradox  abound. 
Only  a  few  out  of  a  multitude  of  illustrations  may  be 
given :  "  Many  that  are  first  shall  be  last ;  and  the  last 
first."  *     "  For  every  one  *>hat  exalteth  himself  shall   be 

^  Mk  6^.  2  12M. 

»  Imago  Christi,  p.  253.  *  Mk  10»». 


JESUS   CHRIST  THE   LORD  37 

humbled,  and  he  that  humbleth  himself  shall  be  exalted."  ^ 
"  I  came  not  to  call  the  righteous,  but  sinners."  ^  "  The 
Sabbath  was  made  for  man,  and  not  man  for  the  Sabbath."  * 
"  Whosoever  would  save  his  life  shall  lose  it ;  and  who- 
soever shall  lose  his  life  for  My  sake  and  the  gospel's  shall 
save  it."  * 

2.  In  many  of  these  brief  sayings  the  truth  is  presented 
in  a  picture ;  there  are  abundant  metapliors,  in  which  there 
is  no  formal  comparison,  but  an  analogy  of  the  natural  and 
the  spiritual  is  assumed,  and  a  figure  from  the  realm  of 
nature  suggests  a  truth  of  the  realm  of  spirit.  We  may 
recall,  without  quoting  the  sayings,  how  Jesus  uses  such 
figurative  forms  of  expression  as  leaven,  cup,  baptism, 
ransom,  trumpet,  sheep's  clothing,  lost  sheep,  yoke,  good 
treasure,  flock,  fire.  Each  word  should,  to  those  familiar 
with  the  Gospels,  at  once  summon  to  remembrance  the 
whole  saying.  Sometimes  the  comparison  is  not  merely 
suggested  in  a  word,  but  the  metaphor  is  allegorically 
expaTided.  Instances  are  the  sayings  about  the  narrow 
gate,  the  plenteous  harvest,  the  mote  and  the  beam,  the 
hand  to  the  plough,  the  fruits,  the  blind  leaders.  This 
expanded  metaphor  is  specially  marked  in  the  Fourth 
Gospel.  Let  us  remind  ourselves  of  the  use  made  of  the 
ideas  of  light,  darkness,  meat,  bread,  water,  hunger,  thirst, 
way,  etc. 

"  It  is  only  to  be  remarked,"  says  Wendt,  "  that,  on  the 
one  hand,  the  figurative  phraseology  used  in  the  Johannine 
discourses  is  less  varied  than  that  met  with  in  the  synoptical 
discourses  ;  and  that,  on  the  other  hand,  the  figures  used  are 
pretty  often  expanded  in  an  allegorising  way."  ^ 

Often  the  comparison  is  formally  stated ;  there  are  similes 
as  well  as  metaphors.  We  may  mention  a  few  :  "  as  a 
little *child,"  "  as  sheep  among  wolves,"  "  wise  as  serpents," 
"  harmless  as  doves,"  "  as  a  hen  gathereth  her  brood,"  "  as 
children  in  the  market-place,"  "  as  a  householder  who  brings 

iLkl4".  2Mk2".  »227.  *s^. 

•  The  Teaching  of  Jesus,  vol.  i.  pp.  146-147. 


38  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

out  of  his  treasure  things  new  and  old,"  "  as  a  shepherd 
divideth  the  sheep  from  the  goats."  There  are  eases, 
however,  in  which  the  comparison  is  more  than  an  illustra- 
tion ;  it  is  a  proof,  an  argument.  A  particular  precept 
may  be  enforced  by  being  brought  under  "  a  more  general 
and  otherwise  valid  rule."  When  this  rule  is  presented  in 
an  independent  narrative,  we  get  a  parable. 

3.  The  parables  of  Jesus  claim  rather  fuller  notice. 
Wendt  distinguishes  two  kinds  of  parables. 

"  The  first  class  refers,"  he  says,  "  to  some  natural  event, 
or  some  fact  of  human  intercourse  or  conduct,  not  as  a 
separate  concrete  case,  but  as  giving  a  rule  in  frequently 
recurring  cases."  ^ 

One  or  two  examples  will  suffice  to  show  just  what  is 
meant.  "  The  whole  have  no  need  of  the  physician,  but  the 
sick."  2  "  No  man  seweth  a  piece  of  a  new  cloth  on  an  old 
garment,"  etc.^  "  Do  men  gather  grapes  of  thorns,  or  figs 
of  thistles  ?  "  *  Some  scholars  would  call  these  parabolic 
sayings,  and  reserve  the  distinctive  term  parable  for  the 
second  kind,  which,  according  to  Wendt, 

"  has  its  distinctive  mark  in  this,  that  it  refers,  not  to  some 
frequently  recurring  general  fact,  but  to  a  single  event 
which  has  occurred  in  quite  definite  circumstances." 

In  these  parables  the  narrative  as  a  whole  is  the  work  of 
the  imagination,  although  the  particulars  are  actual,  or  at 
least  probable,  in  common  life.  Jesus  tells  what  men  do, 
or  at  least  might  do,  in  reality.  In  the  Fourth  Gospel 
there  are  no  parables  of  this  kind  at  all.  There  is  a  great 
difference  between  the  present  and  the  previous  mode  of 
interpreting  the  parables. 

"In  regard  to  all  the  parables  of  Jesus,"  says  Wendt, 
"  the  principle  holds  good  that  they  are  not  to  be  regarded 
as  allegories  in  which,  by  way  of  illustration,  an  event  is 
figuratively  described,  and  in  which,  therefore,  an  ingenious 
meaning  can  be  drawn  out  of  every  detail."^ 

>  Oy*.  o7.,  p.  117.  2Mk'2".  »2". 

«Mt  7'".  'P.  r^O-1'21, 


JESUS  CHKIST  THE   LORD  39 

It  is  in  one  particular,  and,  as  a  rule,  in  one  particular 
only,  that  the  analogy  between  the  natural  and  the  spiritual, 
the  earthly  and  the  heavenly,  holds,  and  the  attempt  to 
press  an  analogy  into  all  the  details  is  to  reduce  the  whole 
to  absurdity.  In  the  parable  of  the  Ten  Vii-gins,^  the 
point  of  comparison  is  the  uncertainty  of  the  coming  of  the 
bridegroom,  and  of  Christ.  Beyond  that  our  interpretation 
need  not  go.  There  are  parables  in  which  the  analogy 
does  extend  further.  As  the  relation  between  father  and 
son  is  the  most  fitting  and  worthy  emblem  of  the  relation 
of  God  and  man,  the  details  of  the  parable  of  the  Prodigal  ^ 
are  invested  with  their  own  significance,  of  which  it  would 
be  only  pedantry  to  forbid  the  interpreter  making  the 
most.  In  some  cases  the  pressing  of  the  analogy  further 
than  the  one  point  of  comparison  would  lead  us  from  truth 
to  error.  When  the  argument  is  a  minori  ad  majus,  or  a 
pejori  ad  melius,  we  must  be  careful  not  to  ascribe  to  God 
defects  which  attach  to  man.  God  is  not  an  unjust  judge,^ 
even  although  importunity  in  prayer  is  commended ;  it  is 
not  from  unwillingness  He  makes  men  wait.  In  general, 
we  must  remember  that  the  kingdom  of  grace  does  and 
must  transcend  the  kingdom  of  nature,  and  that  conse- 
quently the  analogy  suggests,  but  cannot  exhaust  the 
truth.  Accordingly,  it  is  but  seldom  that  the  parable  can 
present  more  than  one  aspect  of  the  truth  ;  and  for  this 
reason  Jesus  often  used  twin  parables  which  are  com- 
plementary. The  parables  of  the  New  Patch  on  the  Old 
Garment,  and  of  the  New  Wine  in  the  Old  Wine-skins,  are 
necessary  to  show  that  both  the  old  and  the  new  order 
suffer  from  a  forced  alliance.*  While  the  parable  of  the 
Mustard  Seed  presents  the  rapid  expansion,  the  parable  of 
the  Leaven  suggests  the  pervasive  influence  of  the  kingdom 
of  God.^  Although  the  Fourth  Gospel  gives  the  parable 
in  partially  allegorised  form,  yet  the  figures  of  Christ  as 
the  door  and  the  shepherd  are,  in  the  same  way,  companion 
illustrations.^     While  laying  stress  on  the  point  of  com- 

*  Mk  2*1-22,  •  Mt  1331-^.  «  Jn  10i-». 


40  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

parison  in  the  parables,  we  must  not  dismiss  all  the  other 
details  as  insignificant.  They  may  not  only  be  necessary 
to  give  completeness  and  interest  to  the  story,  but  also  be 
intended  to  throw  into  greater  prominence  what  is  the 
main  feature  of  the  parable,  and  so  convey  the  lesson 
taught  more  emphatically.  In  revering  the  moral  insight 
and  spiritual  discernment  of  Jesus,  we  cannot  in  His 
parables  but  admire  His  aesthetic  sense  and  His  artistic 
skill. 

4.  We  should  misunderstand  the  mind  of  Jesus, 
however,  if  we  thought  of  His  figurative  language  as  only 
a  rhetorical  device.  The  analogy  of  the  visible  and  the 
invisible,  the  natural  and  the  spiritual,  the  human  and  the 
divine,  had  a  meaning  and  worth  for  Himself.  He  was  at 
home  in  both  worlds,  saw  clearly  and  felt  keenly  in  both ; 
and  it  was  by  a  spontaneous  impulse,  an  inevitable  necessity 
of  His  own  nature,  that  He  presented  the  truth  of  the  one 
world  in  symbols  from  the  other.  The  wide  range  of  the 
illustrations  shows  the  keenness  of  His  observation  and  the 
breadth  of  His  sympathy.  Nothing  in  nature  or  man  was 
unnoticed  by  Him,  or  alien  to  Him. 

"  The  Jewish  life  of  Galilee,"  says  Dr.  Stalker,  "  in  the 
days  of  Christ  is  thus  lifted  up  out  of  the  surrounding  dark- 
ness into  everlasting  visibility ;  and,  as  on  the  screen  of  a 
magic  lantern,  we  see,  in  scene  after  scene,  the  landscapes  of 
the  country,  the  domestic  life  of  the  people,  and  the  larger 
life  of  the  cities  in  all  their  details."  ^ 

But  He  saw  all  in  the  light  of  God,  felt  all  in  the  love  of 
God,  and  so  all  had  for  Him  a  deeper  meaning  and  a 
higher  worth.  He  brought  out  of  His  treasm-e  things  new 
and  old ;  ^  the  familiar  fact,  simple,  even  homely,  but  never 
vulgar  or  commonplace,  made  plain  the  original  truth. 
The  thinker  was  also  the  poet,  and  could  not  but  be ;  for 
does  not  the  imagination  realise  as  the  intellect  cannot 
define  the  profoundest  truth  about  God  and  man  ? 

5.  Closely  akin  to  Jesus'  use  of  comparison  is  His 
practice  of  presenting  truth  and  duty  not  in  abstract  terms, 

>  Imago  Christi,  p.  254.  ^  Mt  13'2. 


JESUS  CHRIST  THE   LORD  41 

but  in  concrete  instances.  He  states  a  general  principle 
by  giving  a  particular  instance  of  its  application.  The 
contrast  between  the  old  law  and  the  new  life,  to  which 
He  calls  men,  is  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  presented 
in  a  series  of  individual  examples.  He  teaches  humanity 
by  the  story  of  the  Good  Samaritan  ;  ^  humility,  by  describ- 
ing the  prayer  of  the  Pharisee  and  the  publican ;  ^  gener- 
osity, by  calling  attention  to  the  gift  of  the  widow,^ 
etc. 

(1)  In  illustrating  a  principle,  Jesus  does  not  take  the 
instances  in  which  the  minimum,  but  in  which  the  maxi- 
mum demand  is  made.  Always  return  good  for  evil,  He 
enjoins,  even  if  it  means  turning  the  other  cheek  to  the 
smiter,  or  giving  up  your  cloak  as  well  as  your  tunic,  or 
going  two  miles  instead  of  one.*  Seek  forgiveness  of  any 
wrong  you  have  done  a  brother,  even  if  you  must  interrupt 
your  sacrifice  to  do  it.^  The  severity  of  the  demand  en- 
hanced the  authority  of  the  principle. 

(2)  But  we  must  be  careful  to  recognise  that  the  same 
principle  may  demand  varied  application ;  and  the  concrete 
instances  Jesus  gives  are  not  intended  to  be  absolute  rules, 
to  be  kept  whether  the  situation  demands  such  an  applica- 
tion of  the  principle  or  not.  What  they  do  teach  is  the 
absoluteness  of  the  demand ;  what  is  the  utmost  each 
case  demands,  conscience  must  always  decide.  As  Wendt 
insists,  Jesus  always  aimed  at  the  greatest  clearness  in  the 
briefest  compass.  Accordingly,  He  always  gives  the  extreme 
instance  of  the  application  of  any  principle  in  which  its 
import  is  most  vividly  presented. 

"  In  dealing  with  the  special  cases  selected  for  examples," 
says  Wendt,  "  Jesus  avoids  all  considerations  and  circum- 
stances which,  though  neither  nullifying  nor  limiting  the 
general  precept  to  be  taught,  would  in  any  degree  obscure 
it.  In  regard  to  many  of  His  declarations  and  precepts, 
which  strike  us  at  first  as  hard  and  strange  sayings,  we  find 
a  satisfactory  explanation  in  this  method  of  dealing  with 

1  Lk  lO^'-ST.  2  189-U^  8  211-4^ 

*  Mt  539-41.  e  Vv.23.  24, 


42  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

examples.  Otherwise  we  are  speedily  tempted  to  regard 
them  as  overstrained  and  unpractical,  or  to  smooth  away 
their  edge  on  the  ground  of  their  being  figurative."  ^ 

(3)  This  peculiarity  is  more  than  a  means  of  effect- 
iveness in  teaching ;  it  distinguishes  morality  from  what 
casuistry  has  often  become.  Casuistry  is  very  often  so 
busy  in  discovering  all  the  possible  exceptions  to,  and  all 
the  legitimate  qualifications  of  a  general  principle,  that  it 
makes  the  principle  of  none  effect.  This  was  just  the 
accusation  Jesus  brought  against  the  scribes ;  and  His 
teaching  was  purposely  directed  against  their  casuistry .^ 
Jesus  was  a  moralist ;  He  presented  the  moral  ideal  in 
its  widest  range,  deepest  reach,  and  highest  claim,  as  in 
His  teaching  on  divorce.^  For  Him,  ever  obedient  to  the 
Heavenly  Vision,  exceptions  and  qualifications  would  be 
meaningless  and  worthless  ;  the  absoluteness  of  His  teach- 
ing expresses  the  perfection  of  His  moral  character  and  the 
certainty  of  His  religious  consciousness. 

Conclusion. — While  gratefully  and  reverently  recognis- 
ing the  significance  and  the  value  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus, 
not  only  for  His  earthly  ministry  and  as  a  preparation  for 
His  heavenly  reign  as  Saviour,  but  also  for  the  thought 
and  life  of  mankind  in  all  ages,  while  carefully  and 
appreciatively  studying  His  method  not  as  an  example 
to  be  slavishly  imitated,  but  as  an  ideal  to  be  freely  real- 
ised, we  must  in  closing,  however,  remind  ourselves  that 
His  voice  as  the  Christian  preacher  is  not  silent ;  but  that 
He  lives  in,  and  so  speaks  through,  the  many  witnesses  of 
all  the  Christian  generations  who  have  declared  His  Gospel 
by  His  Spirit.  However  varied  the  forms  of  preaching  in 
the  Christian  Church  may  have  been,  it  has  proved  the 
power  and  wisdom  of  God  unto  salvation,  as  He  has  not 
only  been  the  object,  but  even  the  subject  of  the  preaching. 
Christ  is  preached,  only  as  Christ  by  the  enlightening, 
quickening,  and  renewing  of  the  preacher  by  His  Spirit 
Himself  preaches.  Accordingly,  this  chapter  presents  only 
a  fragment  of  Christ  the  preacher :  the  volume  itself  cannot 
1  Op.  cit.,  p.  131.  a  Mt  23>»-2«.  » 198-». 


JESUS   CHRIST  THE   LORD  43 

hope  or  attempt  to  exhaust  the  vast,  wondrous,  and  glorious 
theme.^ 

^  Besides  Wendt's  and  Stalker's  books  already  referred  to,  and  the  books 
of  New  Testament  theology,  there  may  be  commended  for  further  study, 
Sanday's  Outlines  of  the  Life  of  Christ,  chap.  iv.  (see  §  97  for  other  books) ; 
Selbie's  Life  and  Teaching  of  Jesus  Christ,  chap.  v.  ;  Robertson's  Our  Lord's 
Teachings,  chaps,  i,  and  ii.  ;  Seeley's  Ecce  Homo  ;  the  writer  ventures  to  add 
his  own  Studies  in  the  Inner  Life  of  Jesus,  chap.  x. 


CHAPTER   II. 

APOSTLES,  PROPHETS,  TEACHERS. 
I. 

1.  When  Jesus  called  His  first  disciples,  according  to  the 
Synoptic  tradition,  His  command  was  with  promise,  "  Come 
ye  after  Me,  and  I  will  make  you  to  become  fishers  of  men."  ^ 
It  was  to  be  their  task  to  catch  men  for  the  kingdom  of 
God.  For  their  calling  they  were  trained  by  His  com- 
panionship, in  following  Him,  learning  of  Him,  and  sharing 
His  yoke.2  Of  the  disciples  He,  according  to  Luke,  chose 
"  twelve  whom  also  He  named  apostles."  ^  "  Moved  with 
compassion  for  the  multitudes,  because  they  were  distressed 
and  scattered,  as  sheep  not  having  a  shepherd,"  He  sent 
forth  the  few  labourers  He  had  so  trained  into  the 
plenteous  harvest,*  giving  them  "authority  over  un- 
clean spirits  to  cast  them  out,  and  to  heal  all  manner  of 
diseases  and  all  manner  of  sickness,"  and  charging  them 
to  preach,  "  saying,  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand."  ^ 
The  instructions  He  gave  them  respecting  the  method  of 
their  work  were  adapted  to  time  and  place,  and  need  not 
be  regarded  as  universal  and  permanent  principles  of  the 
Christian  ministry.  According  to  Luke,  Jesus  at  a  later 
stage  of  His  ministry  "  appointed  seventy  others,  and 
sent  them  two  and  two  before  His  face  into  every  city 
and  place,  whither  He  Himself  was  about  to  come."* 
Similar  instructions  were  given  to  the  larger  as  to  the 
smaller  company  of  preachers.  On  both  occasions  the 
apostles  were  but  heralds,  preparing  the  way  before  Him. 


1  Mk  1''. 

2  Mt  11=8-30. 

8  Lk  613. 

*  Mt  9="-='=*. 

•  101-  ->. 

44 

«  Lk  IQi. 

APOSTLES,   PROPHETS,   TEACHERS  45 

There  is  no  record  of  the  effect  of  the  preaching,  but  the 
Seventy  rejoiced  at  the  success  of  their  exorcisms,  and  had 
to  be  warned  against  their  self-satisfaction.^ 

2.  In  accordance  with  his  method  of  arranging  the 
sayings  of  Jesus  in  discourses  having  a  unity  of  subjects, 
Matthew  conjoins  to  the  counsels  given  the  disciples  on 
their  first  mission,  warnings  about  persecution,  uttered  at  a 
later  stage  of  the  ministry,  and  relating  to  the  circum- 
stances of  the  Church  after  His  departure.  In  one  of 
these  sayings  the  equipment  for  their  work,  which,  how- 
ever, is  much  more  fully  dealt  with  in  the  Johannine 
discourses,  is  mentioned.  "  When  they  deliver  you  up, 
be  not  anxious  how  or  what  ye  shall  speak ;  for  it  shall 
be  given  you  in  that  hour  what  ye  shall  speak.  For  it  is 
not  ye  that  speak,  but  the  Spirit  of  your  Father  that 
speaketh  in  you."^  When  Peter,  speaking  for  the  dis- 
ciples, confessed  Jesus'  Messiahship,  he  was  pronounced 
blessed,  because  "  flesh  and  blood  had  not  revealed  it  unto 
him,  but  the  Father  which  is  in  heaven."  ^  The  divine 
illumination  promised  is  declared  to  be  possessed. 

3.  Without  entering  into  the  question  whether  the  two 
passages  about  the  iKKkijaia^  are  genuine  sayings  of  Jesus, 
or  express  the  consciousness  of  the  early  Christian  Church, 
although  the  writer  inclines  to  the  former  opinion,  we  may 
regard  them  as  throwing  some  light  on  the  apostolic  func- 
tions. As  the  confession  of  the  Messiahship  (or  the  first 
confessor  of  the  Messiah)  is  the  foundation  on  which  rests 
the  Christian  community,  so  the  declaration  of  the  Messiah- 
ship  is  the  primary  content  of  the  apostolic  preaching.  To 
the  apostles  also  is  entrusted  the  stewardship  of  the  king- 
dom of  heaven,^  the  exercise  of  its  authority  in  human 
afifairs  by  the  declaration  of  the  obligations  it  may  impose, 
or  the  liberties  it  may  allow.*  This  function  of  declaring 
God's  will  is  to  find  individual  application  in  the  discipline 

^  Lk  lO"-^".  2  iy£t  1019.  w  3  ign  4  1618.  is  18U-20 

'  This  is  the  more  probable  interpretation  (Weiss)  than  that  given  by 
Bruce  {The  Expositor's  Cheek  Testament,  vol.  i.  p.  225),  i.e.  that  Peter  would 
be  the  door-keeper,  admitting  to  or  excluding  from  the  kingdom. 

*  The  Christian  ideal  was  a  liberation  from  legal  and  ritual  bondage. 


46  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

of  the  community,  the  exclusion  of  any  member  refusing  to 
be  reconciled  to  another.  Not  only  is  the  Father's  answer 
assured  for  united  prayer,  but  also  Christ's  own  presence  in 
any  gathering  of  His  disciples  in  His  name.  Although  the 
same  question  arises  as  regards  the  great  missionary  com- 
mission.^ we  need  not  hesitate  about  using  that  passage  for 
our  present  purpose.  A  world-wide  mission  is  entrusted  to 
the  disciples.  All  nations  are  to  be  won  for  discipleship, 
and  the  new  relation  is  to  be  confessed  in,  and  signified  by, 
baptism  into  the  threefold  name.^  So  universal  a  task, 
with  all  difficulties  it  involves,  is  justified  by  the  supreme 
authority  of  Christ,  and  its  discharge  is  encouraged  by  the 
assurance  of  His  constant  presence. 

4.  When  we  turn  from  the  Synoptic  tradition  to  the 
Johannine,  especially  the  farewell  talk  of  Jesus  with  His 
disciples,  these  assurances  of  His  constant  presence  and 
supreme  authority,  and  of  their  equipment  for  their  work 
by  the  Spirit,  are  emphasised  and  developed.  After  His 
departure  another  Paraclete  (Advocate,  Helper,  Companion) 
is  promised  to  them  in  the  Spirit  of  truth,  the  Holy  Spirit, 
who  will  continue  the  revelation  of  Christ,  both  by  recalling 
His  teachings  and  by  guiding  them  to  an  understanding  of 
truths  which  they  cannot  now  receive  from  His  lips ;  but 
the  Spirit's  revelation  will  not  supplant,  but  only  make 
explicit  what  is  already  implied  in  the  revelation  of  the 
Son.  The  Spirit  shall  bear  witness  of  Christ  to  the 
disciples,  that  they  may  become  His  witnesses  to  the  world, 
doubly  qualified  by  their  knowledge  of  the  entire  course 
of  His  earthly  ministry  and  by  the  enlightening  of  the 
Spirit.^  When  Jesus  appeared  in  the  Upper  Eoom  after 
He  had  risen,  the  Fourth  Gospel  represents  Him  as  convey- 
ing the  Holy  Spirit  to  the  disciples  by  breathing  upon 
them,  and  so  giving  them,  in  virtue  of  their  possession  of 
the  Spirit,  the  authority  to  grant  or  withhold  the  forgive- 
ness of  sin.*     As  regards  the  function,  expressed  in  the 

1  Mt  2818-2''. 

2  Tlie  apostolic  practice  was  baptism  into  Christ's  name. 

»  Jn  14*-  "•  ^^  1612-1*  152G.  27,  4  2022-  28. 


APOSTLES,   PROPHETS,   TEACHERS  47 

words,  "  Whose  soever  sins  ye  forgive,  they  are  forgiven 
unto  them ;  whose  soever  sins  ye  retain,  they  are  retained," 
it  is  similar  to  that  assigned  in  the  Synoptic  tradition,^  and 
the  three  passages  must  be  taken  together  as  mutually 
illuminative.  The  proclamation  of  the  laws  of  the  king- 
dom of  God,  the  decision  of  the  membership  of  the  Christian 
community,  the  granting  or  the  withholding  of  the  assur- 
ance of  pardon,  are  all  modes  in  which,  through  His  chosen 
channels,  the  Spirit  of  God  continues  and  applies  in  the 
Church  the  revelation  of  Christ.  It  need  hardly  be  said 
that  we  are  here  concerned  not  with  official  privileges,  but 
personal  qualifications. 

5.  While  the  Synoptic  tradition  throws  into  prominence 
the  choice  of  twelve  constant  companions  of  Jesus,  who 
were  with  Him  in  His  Galilaean  ministry  and  in  His  last 
days  in  Jerusalem,  it  would  be  a  mistake  to  ignore  the 
larger  company  of  disciples,  one  of  whom,  in  the  writer's 
judgment,  was  the  Fourth  Evangelist,^  who,  as  having  a 
knowledge  of  the  ministry  of  Jesus,  were  also  fit  to  be  His 
witnesses,  and  who  could  serve  as  His  apostles  or  mes- 
sengers. The  choice  of  Matthias  by  lot  to  take  the  place 
of  Judas  ^  had,  as  far  as  we  can  judge,  no  significance  for 
the  subsequent  history  of  the  Church,  and,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  Peter,  John,  and  James,  the  Twelve  fall  into  the 
background,  and  others  come  to  the  front  in  the  witness 
of  the  Gospel  and  the  work  of  the  kingdom.  It  is 
significant  that,  when  Paul  refers  to  the  ministries  in  the 
Christian  Church,  he  includes  the  apostleship  among  the 
charisms  {■xapia-^iara),  the  gifts  of  the  Spirit.  "  And  God 
hath  set  some  in  the  church,  first  apostles,  secondly 
prophets,  thirdly  teachers,  then  miracles  (RV.  marg.  Gr. 
powers),  then  gifts  of  healings,  helps,  governments  (E.V. 
marg.,  wise  counsels),  divers  kinds  of  tongues."  *  This  is  no 
exhaustive  enumeration,  for  elsewhere  he  adds  "  evangelists 
and  pastors."^  What  Paul  was  concerned  about  was  not 
official  status,  but    spiritual    endowment ;    and    the  New 

^  Mt  1619  igw  2  See  articles  in  The  Expositor,  1914-1915. 

3  Ac  1=«.  *  1  Co  12=8.  5  Eph  4". 


48  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Testament  as  a  whole  does  not  warrant  us  in  thinking  of 
any  rigid  ecclesiastical  organisation,  but  only  of  a  religious 
community,  the  members  of  which  were  variously  endowed, 
and  so  fitted  for  different  functions.  Keeping  this  general 
consideration  before  us,  we  may  now  look  more  closely  at 
these  different  functions. 

6,  The  term  apostle  is  first  used  of  the  disciples  when 
sent  out  on  their  mission  ^  "  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house 
of  Israel,"  and  is  dearly  used  in  the  common  sense  of 
messenger.  As  we  have  already  seen,  before  the  Ascension 
Jesus  declared  the  scope  of  this  mission  to  be  world-wide,^ 
and  their  task  to  be  witness.^  The  qualification  for  witness 
was  that  they  had  been  with  Him  from  the  beginning,  and 
had  witnessed  the  Kesurrection.  The  qualification  is 
stated  clearly  and  fully  by  Peter,  in  Ac  l^^-  22^  in  dealing 
with  the  appointment  of  an  apostle  to  take  the  place  of 
Judas.  While  probably  the  knowledge  of  the  earthly 
ministry  was  not  insisted  on  in  an  apostle,  the  ability  to 
witness  to  the  Eesurrection  was.  For  Paul,  in  claiminsr 
apostleship,  does  not  claim  any  such  personal  companion- 
ship with  Jesus/  but  does  claim  to  have  seen  Jesus  as 
Kisen.^  James,  the  Lord's  brother,^  was  not  a  disciple 
during  the  earthly  ministry,^  but  he  saw  the  Risen  Lord  ^ 
and  believed. 

f  ] 
"  This  mark  of  apostleship  "  (i.e.  witness-bearing),  says 
Hort,  "  is  evidently  founded  on  direct  personal  disciple- 
ship,  and  as  evidently  it  is  incommunicable.  Its  whole 
meaning  rested  on  immediate  and  unique  experience ;  as 
St.  John  says, '  that  which  we  have  heard,  that  which  we 
have  seen  with  our  eyes,  that  which  we  beheld,  and  our  hands 
handled,'  (1  John  i.  1).  Without  a  true  perceptive  faith,  such 
a  faith  as  shewed  itself  in  St.  Peter,  all  this  acquaintance 
through  the  bodily  senses  was  in  vain.    But  the  truest  faith  of 


^  Mt  102,  Lk  6^3.    The  words  "whom  also  He  named  apostles  "  in  Mk  3^^ 
are  of  doubtful  authenticity. 

8  j^it  28'8 -o.  3  L]^  24^8 .  cf.  Jn  15^. 

*  2  Co  5^^  makes  no  such  claims.  ^  1  Co  9' ;  cf.  15'. 

»  Gal  1".  "^  Jn  73-».  s  j  Co  15^ 


APOSTLES,   PROPHETS,   TEACHERS  49 

one  who  was  a  disciple  only  in  the  second  degree,  however 
precious  in  itself,  could  never  qualify  him  for  bearing  the 
apostolic  character."  ^ 

Since  the  inward  revelation  through  the  Spirit  was 
consequent  on,  and  subordinate  to  the  outward  revelation 
by  the  Son,^  and  Pentecost  followed  the  Crucifixion  and 
the  Kesurrection,  we  can  understand  how  and  why,  even  in 
a  Spirit-filled  community,  the  place  of  pre-eminence  belonged 
to  those  who  had  seen  and  heard  the  Lord  Himself,  in  His 
earthly  life  and  in  His  appearance  after  His  resurrection  ; 
for  surely  their  immediate  contact  and  intimate  communion 
with  Him,  when  His  truth  and  grace  were  received  in 
faith,  was  the  condition  of  the  fulness  of  the  Spirit's 
enlightening,  renewing,  and  strengthening  power,  which 
enabled  them  not  only  to  witness,  but  also  to  guide  and 
guard  the  Christian  community  in  the  Way  appointed  and 
approved  by  the  Lord  Himself. 

7.  Prophecy  was  one  of  the  gifts  of  the  Spirit  in  the 
Christian  Church,  subordinate,  however,  to  the  apostolic 
function ;  ^  esteemed  more  profitable  than  the  gift  of 
tongues,*  yet  pronounced  transitory,  and  inferior  to  faith, 
hope,  love.^  The  work  of  the  prophets,  as  of  the  other 
ministers,  is  defined  as  "  for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints, 
unto  the  work  of  ministering,  unto  the  building  up  of  the 
body  of  Chr:*  1"®  The  prophetic  movement  in  Israel  as 
a  religious  revival  in  its  earlier  phases  corresponded  to  the 
"  sacred  enthusiasm  "  which  took  possession  of  the  Christian 
Church  after  Pentecost.'^  Its  abnormal  psychical  accom- 
paniments had  a  counterpart  in  some  of  the  charisms,  such  as 

1  The  Christian  Ecdesia,  p.  39.  «  Jn  16'2- ". 

»1  Co  1228.  M45,  6138.H 

«  Eph  4'2  ;  cf.  Ac  133.     See  Ac  \V^  21"  IS^-  2  153  219^  1  jn  4»,  Rev  2«>. 

'  "  Pneuma  hagien  (without  the  article)  denotes  the  sacred  enthusiasm 
which  marked  certain  elect  souls  before  Christ's  coming,  such  as  Zacharias, 
Elizabeth,  and  their  son  John  ;  and  after  Pentecost,  Christians  generally, 
though  also  in  various  special  degrees.  On  the  other  hand,  where  the  aiticle 
is  present,  a  further  reference  is  usually  intended,  and  it  means  '  the  Holy 
Spirit,'  or  God  as  personally  indwelling  (immanent)  and  working  in  man  " 
{The  Century  Bible  :  Acts,  p.  386). 


50  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

speaking  with  tongues.^  The  revelation  of  God  came  both 
to  apostles  and  prophets  in  the  Spirit,^  but  not  necessarily 
in  a  trance.^  As  the  Spirit  works  in  prophecy,  the  prophet 
is  spiritual ;  but  the  Spirit  is  under  the  prophet's  control,* 
so  that  his  speech  should  be  according  to  the  proportion  of 
faith,^  and,  therefore,  the  neglect  of  self-control  in  exercising 
the  gift  is  censured.^ 

8.  Both  apostleship  and  prophecy  were  conceived  as 
-X^apLo-fiaTa,  gifts  of  God,  not  conferring  an  office,  but 
rather  imposing  a  function. 

"  Much  profitless  labour,"  says  Hort,  "  has  been  spent  on 
trying  to  force  the  various  terms  used  into  meaning  so  many 
definite  ecclesiastical  offices.  Not  only  is  the  feat  impossible, 
but  the  attempt  carries  us  away  from  St.  Paul's  purpose, 
which  is  to  show  how  the  different  functions  are  those  which 
God  has  assigned  to  the  different  members  of  a  single  body. 
In  both  lists  apostles  and  prophets  come  first,  two  forms  of 
altogether  exceptional  function,  tiiose  who  were  able  to 
bear  witness  of  Jesus  and  the  Kesurrection  by  the  evidence 
of  their  own  sight — the  Twelve  and  St.  Paul — and  those 
whose  monitions  or  outpourings  were  regarded  as  specially 
inspired  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  Each  of  these  held  one  kind 
of  function,  and  next  to  these  in  1  Cor.  come  all  who  in  any 
capacity  were  *  teachers '  (BiSda-KoXoi)  without  any  of  the 
extraordinary  gifts  bestowed  on  apostles  and  prophets.  In 
Ephesians  this  function  is  given  in  a  less  simple  form.  First 
there  are  '  evangelists,'  doubtless  men  like  Titus  and  Timothy 
(2  Tim.  iv.  5)  and  Tychicus  and  Epaphras,  disciples  of 
St.  Paul  who  went  about  from  place  to  place  preaching  the 
Gospel  in  multiplication  and  continuation  of  his  labours 
without  possessing  the  peculiar  title  of  apostleship. 
Probably  enough  in  St.  Paul's  long  imprisonment  this  kind 
of  work  had  much  increased.  Then  come  '  pastors  and 
teachers,'  men  who  taught  within  their  own  community  and 
whose  work  was  therefore  as  that  of  shepherds  taking  care 
for  a  flock."  7 

^  Ac  2*.     The  tongues  are  not  foreign  languages,  but  ecstatic  utterances, 
often  unintelligible  as  prophecy  was  not.     See  1  Co  14'"^". 

2  Epb  3»,  Rev  li".  »  AclO"' 22".  *  1  Co  12i«  14^7  v.*". 

6  Ro  12''.  «  1  Co  14«*-si. 

'  The  Christian  Ecdesia,  pp.  157-158. 


APOSTLES,    PROPHETS,    TEACHERS  51 

We  may  recall  in  this  connection  Paul's  solemn  warn- 
ing to  the  elders  of  Ephesus.^  The  elders  also  are  the 
servants  of  the  Spirit,  if  less  richly  endowed  than  apostles 
and  prophets.  While  the  elders  or  bishops  and  deacons 
were  the  local  settled  ministry,  the  apostles,  prophets,  and 
evangelists  were  the  universal  travelling  ministry ;  and 
after  the  Apostolic  Age,  as  the  former  gained  authority,  the 
latter  lost  influence.  Impostors  seem  to  have  assumed  the 
functions  of  apostles  and  prophets,  as  the  warnings  in  the 
DidacTie,  or  The  Teaching  of  the  Apostles,  show.^ 


II. 

1.  The  times  and  places  of  apostolic  preaching  may  be 
very  briefly  referred  to. 

"  As  the  Christian  Church,"  says  Schaff,  "  rests  histori- 
cally on  the  Jewish  Church,  so  Christian  worship  and  the 
congregational  organisation  rest  on  that  of  the  synagogue, 
and  cannot  be  well  understood  without  it."  * 

Both  Christ  Himself  and  the  apostles,  wherever  and 
whenever  practicable,  used  the  synagogue  as  the  scene  of 
their  labours.  Even  Paul,  on  his  mission  to  the  Gentiles, 
first  visited  the  Jewish  synagogue,  and  there  preached  until 
prevented  by  Jewish  opposition.  In  the  synagogue  "  the 
chief  parts  of  the  service  were,  according  to  the  Mishna, 
the  recitation  of  the  Sluma  (a  confession  of  faith),  prayer^ 
the  reading  of  the  Thorah,  the  reading  of  the  prophets, 
the  blessing  of  the  priest.  To  these  were  added  the 
translation  of  the  portions  of  Scripture  read,  which  is 
assumed  in  the  Mishna,  and  the  explanation  of  what  had 
been  read  by  an  edifying  discourse,  which  in  Philo  figures 
as  the  chief  matter  in  the  whole  service."*  It  is  only 
with  the  place  of  preaching  in  the  synagogue  that  we  are 
concerned. 

^  Ac  20^'.  *  See  chaps,  xi.,  xii. 

*  Apostolic  Christianity,  p.  456. 

*  Schiirer's  The  Jewish  People  in  the  Time  of  Jesus  Christ,  Dir.  ii.  vol.  ii. 
p.  76. 


52  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"The  reading  of  the  Scripture,"  says  Schiirer,  "was 
followed  by  an  edifying  lecture  or  sermon  (n^'i'n),  by  which 
the  portion  which  had  been  read  was  explained  and  applied. 
That  such  explanations  were  the  general  practice  is  evident 
from  the  SiBda-Kecv  ev  rah  avvay(oyal<;,^  so  frequently  men- 
tioned in  the  New  Testament  from  Luke  iv,  20  sqq.,  and  from 
the  express  testimony  of  Philo.  The  preacher  Qfy\)  used 
to  sit  (Luke  iv.  20  :  iKdOiaev)  on  an  elevated  place.  Nor  was 
such  preaching  confined  to  appointed  persons,  but,  as  appears 
especially  from  Philo,  open  to  any  competent  member  of  the 
congregation."  ^ 

The  preaching,  neither  of  Jesus  nor  of  the  apostles,  was 
confined  to  the  synagogue.  He  preached  in  the  fields, 
roads,  and  streets  of  Galilee,  and  also  in  the  temple  at 
Jerusalem ;  and  so  did  they.  When  compelled  to  with- 
draw from  the  synagogue  at  Corinth,  Paul  exercised  his 
ministry  in  a  private  house,  that  of  Titus  Justus,  adjoining 
the  synagogue.^  At  Ephesus  for  two  years  he  reasoned 
daily  in  the  school  of  Tyrannus.*  Thus  the  Gospel  was 
transplanted  from  Jewish  to  Gentile  soil,  and  the  Christian 
preacher  ceased  to  be  a  Jewish  scribe  and  became  a  Gentile 
rhetor  or  sophist.^ 

1  Mt  4«  Mk  121  62,  Lk  \^  6«  13»»,  Jn  6^9  IS^o. 

2  Op.  cit.,  p.  82.     See  Lk  4"-2o,  Jn  6^,  Ac  68-'<>  92°  l-3« 
»  Ac  187. 

*  199- 10.  Dr.  Bartlet's  comment  may  be  quoted:  "i.e.  a  lecture-room 
such  as  rhetors  or  sophists  (popularizers  of  philosophy)  used  for  their 
orations  or  '  displays.'  This  particular  '  school '  bore  the  name  of  Tyrannus, 
perhaps  from  the  rhetor  who  originally  gave  prestige  to  the  spot.  To  the 
general  public  Paul's  '  reasoning '  on  the  claims  of  the  gospel  would  now 
seem,  more  than  ever,  that  of  a  specially  piquant  travelling  sophist  of 
religious  sympathies"  {The  Century  Bible:  Acts,  pp.  314-315). 

^  This  is  a  topic  to  which  we  shall  return  in  the  next  chapter  ;  but  atten- 
tion may  here  be  called  to  two  articles  by  Dr.  Maurice  Jones  on  "  The  Style 
of  St.  Paul's  Preaching"  {The  Expositor,  8th  Series,  vol.  xiv.  p.  242  ff.), 
in  which  he  seeks  to  show  the  influence  in  Paul's  method  of  preaching  of 
the  Cynic-Stoic  Diatribe.  He  recognises,  however,  that  the  strong  person- 
ality of  the  apostle  asserted  itself.  "  If  St.  Paul  wears  the  mantle  of  the 
Greek  preacher  he  wears  it  very  loosely,  putting  it  on  and  otf  at  will." 
How  Paul  thought  of  himself  as  a  Christian  preacher  Dr.  Robert  Law 
has  sought  to  set  forth  in  an  article  on  "St.  Paul  on  Preaching"  {The 
Conntructive  Quarterly,  vol.  v.  p.  552  6".),  with  special  reference  to  the 
passages  in  1  Corinthians. 


APOSTLES,   PROPHETS,    TEACHERS  53 

2.  From  the  times  and  places  we  turn  to  the  contents  of 
apostolic  preaching.  We  cannot  claim  the  discourses  in 
Acts  as  verbatim  reports ;  but  we  must  not  dismiss  them  as 
free  compositions  of  the  author ;  for  a  careful  study  of 
them  shows  their  appropriateness  to  the  occasion,  the  pur- 
pose,  the  speaker^3nd_the_stageof  theological  development 
whTch  had""been  reached.     Peter's  speech  at  Pentecost  ^  is 


deserving  of  very  close_stud^  ;_a8_itJs_tEelifst  statement  of 
thejipostolic^^ffiessagerit  is  the  first  endeavour  made  in~tBe 
Christian  Church  to  understand,  and  to  make  understood, 
the  meaning  of  the  Person  of  Christ,  and  especially  of  His 
death.  We  have  in  this  speech  five  elements  of  the  early 
Christian  preaching — (1)  testimony  to  fact,  especially  the 
Crucifixion  and  Resurrection ;  (2)  interpretation  of  fact,  in 
which  throughout  the  book  of  Acts  we  can  trace  a  develop- 
ment ;  (3)  argument  from  prophecy,  the  most  potent  kind 
of  reasoning  for  a  Jewish  audience,  in  which,  however, 
Jewish  modes  of  interpretation  were  employed,  which  our 
modern  scholarship  can  no  longer  regard  as  valid ;  (4) 
appeal  to  conscience,  to  bring  home  to  the  Jewish  nation 
the  crime  of  Christ's  death  in  order  to  awaken  penitence ; 
and  (5)  assurance  of  forgiveness  and  salvation  through  faith 
in  Christ.  Of_the_Sficond  address  of  Peter,  in  explanation 
of  the  first  miracle,^-)the  peculiar  features  are — (1)  the 
milder    tone  adopted   towards   the    Jewish    people  (v.^'^) ; 

(2)  the  advance  in  theology,  as  the  death  is  now  connected 
with  the  necessity  of    the   fulfilment   of  prophecy  (v.^^) ; 

(3)  the  reference  to  the  Second  Advent,  a  subject  which 
had  not  been  mentioned  in  the  previous  address  {vP). 
In  the  defence  of  the  apostolic  preaching  before  the 
Jewish  Sanhedrin,  the  characteristic  feature  noted  is 
holdness?  Against  all  threats  the  imperative  duty  of  obey- 
ing God  rather  than  man,  of  testifying  what  they  had  seen 

^  Ac  2"-*".  2  3U-26_ 

'  Ac  4^^.  irapp7)<Tlav,  a  word  on  which  Knowling's  comment  deserves 
quotation  :  "either  boldness  of  speech,  or  of  bearing;  it  was  the  feature 
which  had  characterised  the  teaching  of  Our  Lord  ;  cf.  Mark  viii.  32,  and 
nine  times  in  St.  John  in  connection  with  Christ's  teaching  or  bearing  ;  and 
the  disciples  in  this  respect  also  were  as  their  Master,  iv.  29,  31  (ii.  29) ; 


54  T  /  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

and  heard,  was  asserted  by  the  apostles.  The  experience 
of  the  truth  and  grace  of  Christ  involved  for  them  the 
obligation  to  proclaim  Christ. 

3.  In  Peter,  the  spokesman  of  the  Twelve,  we  have  the 
primitive  apostolic  preaching,  beyond  which  we  pass  in 
Stephen  ^  and  Paul. 

"  The  significance  of  Stephen,"  says  Dr.  Andrews,  "  can 
scarcely  be  over-estimated.  His  preaching  marks  the  most 
decisive  advance  that  had  as  yet  been  taken  by  the  Church. 
Hitherto  the  Christian  community  had  been  bound  up  in 
the  closest  way  with  the  Jews.  In  the  era  before  Stephen, 
Christianity  was  practically  a  Jewish  sect,  like  Pharisaism, 
for  instance.  The  only  point  of  separation  was  the  distinctive 
belief  that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah.  It  was  Stephen  who  in 
the  first  instance  saved  the  Church  from  remaining  a  mere 
branch  of  Judaism,  and  struck  the  first  note  of  Universalism. 
He  asserted  that  Christianity  was  independent  of  the  Temple 
and  of  the  Law,  and  must  not  be  confined  within  the  narrow 
channels  of  Jewish  custom  and  belief." 

This  assertion  he  supported  by  an  appeal  to  history. 

"  He  shows  (a)  that  long  before  either  Temple  or  Law 
existed,  God  had  made  a  covenant  with  Abraham ;  (b)  that 
He  had  revealed  Himself  to  Joseph  and  Moses  in  Egypt 
when  they  were  far  away  from  the  sacred  city  of  Jerusalem  ; 
(c)  that  He  had  been  with  Israel  during  their  time  of 
wandering  in  the  wilderness,  and  had  accepted  their  wor- 
ship ;  (d)  that  even  when  the  Temple  was  built  by  Solomon 
it  was  distinctly  stated  in  the  prayer  of  dedication  that  the 
presence  of  God  was  not  restricted  within  its  walls." 

He  also  used  the  history  of  the  past  to  prove 

"that  there  had  been  men  in  every  age  who,  like  his 
accusers,  persecuted  the  prophets  and  resisted  the  new 
revelation  of  truth  which  they  brought  to  the  world."  ^ 

4.  Stephen  was  not,  however,  the  only  forerunner  of 

(,  so,  too,  of  St.  Paul,  xxviii.  31,  and  frequently  used  by  St.  Paul  himself  in  his 
I  Epistles  ;  also  by  St.  John  four  times  in  his  First  Epistle,  of  confidence  in 
approaching  God;  '  urbem  et  orbem  hac  parrhesia  vicerunt'  (Becgel)." — 
vThe  Expositor's  Greek  Testament,  vol.  ii.  p.  128.  I 

1  Ac  7.  ''  IVestvdnster  New  Testament:  Acts,  pp.  93,  96. 


APOSTLES,    PROPHETS,   TEACHERS       ^^  55 

Paul.  In  Peter's  address  to  Cornelius  ^  and  his  friends,  the 
opening  statement  shows  how  rapidly,  under  the  Spirit's 
guidance,  the  Church  was  moving ;  for  the  apostle  not  only 
declares  that  Christ  is  Lord  of  all  (v.^'^),  but  recognises  that 
God  is  no  respecter  of  persons,  but  welcomes  all  godly  and 
good  men  (v.^).  It  was  Paul,  however,  who  became  the 
Apostle  to  the  Gentiles.  He,  too,  first  appealed  to  the 
Jews,  and  was  driven  by  their  unbelief  to  turn  to  the 
Gentiles.  PauTs  sermon  in  the  synagogueat  Antioch  in^- 
/t^  Pisidia  ^  is  addressed  mainly,  but  not  solelyTto  the  Jews 
^^  there,  but  also  to  the  God-fearing  Gentiles.  The  latter  he 
does  not  depreciate  as  an  inferior  class ;  but,  "  as  the  orator 
proceeds  and  grows  warm  in  his  subject,  his  address  becomes 
still  more  complimentary  to  the  God-fearing  Gentiles  and 
actually  raises  them  to  the  same  level  with  the  Jews  as 
'  Brethren.' "  Accordingly,  the  sermon  "  represented  a  new 
step  in  his  thought  and  method."^  Nevertheless,  the 
sermon  is  typical  of  his  mode  of  address  to  his  country- 
men. Like  Peter  Jn^  his  speeches,  Paul  here  makes  the^ 
appeal  to  history,  and  uses  the  argument  from  prophecy ; 
he  lays  stress  on  the  fact  of  the  Resurrection,  and,  while 
mentioning  the  death  of  Christ  as  the  fulfilment  of  what 
was  "  written  of  him,"  he  does  not,  as  his  letters  might  lead 
us  to  expect,  offer  any  doctrine  of  the  Atonement.  The_\„^ 
sermon  falls  into  three  parts.  In  the  first  part  (vv."'^^)  he 
sketches  the  history^  God's  chosen  people,  to  show  how  it 
finds  its  divinely  fixed  goal  in  Jesus  as  Saviour ;  the  second 
part  (vv.2^"^'^)  witnesses  that,  in  spite  of  the  prophetic 
warnings,  and  yet  in  fulfilment  of  prophetic  predictions,  He 
was  rejected  and  crucified  by  men,  but  raised  from  the 
dead  by  God,  as  had  been  also  foretold ;  and  the  third  part 
^yy  38-41^  makes  the  practical  application  in  an  offer  of 
forgiveness,  and  a  warning  against  unbelief.  While  the 
more  fully  developed  Pauline  theology  is  absent,  yet  its 
outstanding  doctrine  is  asserted  in  the  words,  "  By  him  every 
one  that  believeth  is  justified  from  all  things,  from  which 

1  Ac  lO''*-*^.  » l3'«-«. 

»  Ramsay,  The  Cities  of  St.  Paul,  pp.  301,  303, 


56  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

ye  could  not  be  justified  by  the  law  of  Moses."  ^  How 
Paul,  in  his  preaching,  became  all  things  to  all  men  is 
shown  by  the  report  given  of  two  sermons  addressed  to 
Gentiles.  At^Lystra.^  in  seeking^to  prevent  the  attempt  to 
worship  Barnabas  and  himself  as  gods,  he  rebuked  idolatry, 
and  appealed  to  the  witness  to  God  in  nature,  with  its 
supply  for  human  needs.  In  Athens  ^  he  skilfully  used 
the  inscription  "  to  an  unknown  GTod,"  which  he  had  seen 
on  an  altar,  to  introduce  the  revelation  of  God,  of  which  he 
was  the  messenger,  and  enforced  his  own  argument  by  an 
appeal  to  the  current  Stoic  philosophy,  as  expressed  by  a 
widely  known  poet.  Having  thus  secured  a  hearing,  he 
attacked  idolatry,  and  insisted  on  the  necessity  of  repent- 
ance in  view  of  the  final  judgment.  His  intention  to  lead 
his  hearers  to  the  Eisen  Lord  was  frustrated,  however,  by 
their  clamour.  As  the  speech  was  never  finished,  there  is 
no  warrant  whatever  for  the  assertion  that  Paul  failed 
because  he_8ubstituted  philosophy  for  Christ,  ancTTEat  he 
confessed  his  ownTaiTure  in  the  determination  he  expressed 
in  1  Corinthians  "  not  to  know  anything  save  Jesus  Christ, 
and  Him  crucified."*  Had  he  begun  with  distinctively 
Christian  truth,  would  his  audience  have  listened  to  him 
as  long  as  they  did  ?  His  failure  on  this  occasion  offers  no 
valid  reason  against  the  endeavour  of  a  preacher  to  find 
the  points  of  contact  with  his  hearers,  and  to  follow  the 
lines  of  least  resistance  as  long  as  he  can.  We  admire  and 
do  not  censure  Paul  for  trying  to  be  the  philosopher  among 
philosophers.  This  brief  sketch  of  the  speeches  in  Acts 
has  served,  it  is  hoped,  to  indicate  not  only  the  message  of 
the  Christian  preachers  in  the  Apostolic  Age,  but  also  the 
manner  and  the  method  of  its  delivery. 

"  The  preaching  of  the  Gospel,"  says  Schaff,  "  appears  in 
the  first  period  mostly  in  the  form  of  a  missionary  address  to 
the  unconverted  ;  that  is  a  simple,  Hving  presentation  of  the 
main  facts  of  the  life  of  Jesus,  with  practical  exhortation  to 
repentance  and  conversion.  Christ  crucified  and  risen  was 
the  luminous  centre,  whence  a  sanctifying  light  was  shed  on 

»  Ac  1389.  a  1415-13^  8  1722-si,  1  1  Co  22. 


APOSTLES,   PROPHETS,   TEACHERS  57 

all  the  relations  of  life.  Gushing  forth  from  a  full  heart, 
this  preaching  went  to  the  heart;  and  springing  from  an 
inward  life,  it  kindled  life — a  new,  divine  life — in  the 
susceptible  hearers.  It  was  revival  preaching  in  the  purest 
sense."  ^ 

5.  The  speeches  recorded  in  Acts  must  be  supple- 
mented by  the  indications  given,  as  in  the  Epistles. 
(1)  While  it  is  certain  that  Paul  in  his  ordinary  preaching 
did  not  discuss  doctrinal  and  practical  problems  such  as  he 
dealt  with  in  his  letters,  yet  his  letters  do  supplement  our 
knowledge  of  the  content  of  his  preaching.  (2)  The 
space  filled  in  our  New  Testament  by  the  letters  of 
Paul  should  not  be  allowed  to  hide  from  us  the  fact  that 
the  form  in  which  he  preached  was  not  the  only  mode  of 
presenting  the  Gospel  in  the  Apostolic  Age.  Agreeing 
with  Paul  as  to  the  freedom  of  the  believer  from  the  Jewish 
ceremonial  law,  many  preachers  did  not  accept  his  position 
as  to  the  abrogation  of  all  external  law  for  Christians,  and 
tended  to  regard  the  Gospel  itself  as  a  law  of  righteous- 
ness.^ In  these  circles  the  teaching  of  Jesus  was  presented 
as  the' new  law,  and  doubtless  in  preaching  the  words  of 
Jesus  were  much  quoted,  explained,  and  enforced.  The 
Epistle  of  James  has  least  of  the  distinctive  Pauline  teach- 
ing, and  yet  most  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus.  This  and  other 
writings  in  the  New  Testament  have  been  treated  by  Dr. 
Moffatt,  in  his  Introduction,  in  a  chapter  entitled  "  Homilies 
and  Pastorals."     Of  these  writings  he  states : 

"  Even  in  form  they  vary.  Hebrews  has  no  address,  and 
1  John  has  no  definite  address ;  while  neither  James  nor 
1  John  has  any  epistolary  conclusion.  The  more  important 
of  them  show  how  Paul  had  popularised  the  epistolary  form 
in  primitive  Christianity,  but  it  is  as  homilies  rather  than  as 
epistles  that  they  are  to  be  ranked."  ^ 

The  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  whether  it  was  ever  delivered 
as  a  sermon  or  a  series  of  sermons,  may  serve  as  an  illus- 

^  Apostolic  Christianity,  pp.  461,  462. 

2  See  McGiffert's  History  of  Christianity  in  the  Apostolic  Age,  p.  440  flf. 

•  JfUroduction  to  the  Literature  of  the  New  Testament,  p.  317. 


58  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

tration  of  the  blending  of  exposition  and  exhortation,  which 
may  be  described  by  the  term  homily,  the  earUest  form 
assumed  by  Christian  preaching.^ 


*  The  subject  of  tins  chapter  may  be  further  studied  in  Bering's 
Homiletik,  pp.  3-6  ;  Schatf' s  Ajiostolic  Christianity,  p.  461  f.  ;  Bartlet's 
The  Apostolic  Age,  p.  476  f.  ;  Ker's  History  of  Preaching,  Lecture  III.  ; 
Home's  The  Romance  of  Preaching,  Lecture  III. 


CHAPTER  IIL 

APOLOGISTS   AND   FATHERS. 

L 

1.  We  can  understand  the  development  of  the  organism 
of  Christian  preaching  only  as  we  know  the  environment  in 
which  it  was  placed.  In  passing  from  the  Jewish  to  the 
Gentile  environment,  Christianity  did  not  abandon  a  world 
familiar  with  preaching  for  a  world  regardless  of  it.  Prob- 
ably there  had  never  been  in  human  history  a  period  in 
which  preaching  had  been  so  widely  and  keenly  appreci- 
ated, as  when  the  Christian  Church  went  forth  to  conquer 
the  world  by  "  the  foolishness  of  preaching."  ^  An  admirable 
account  of  the  situation  has  been  given  by  Dr.  Angus ; 

"  The  ancient  world  resorted  to  preaching.  Philosophy, 
which  then  covered  the  fields  of  morality  and  religion,  led 
the  way;  Porphyry  demands  that  the  aim  of  philosophy 
should  be  '  the  salvation  of  the  soul.'  Free  speech  was 
everywhere  permitted.  Oratory,  of  which  antiquity  was 
more  appreciative  than  we,  followed  this  practical  trend. 
Philosophers  avowed  themselves  to  be  physicians  of  the 
soul,  ambassadors  of  God,  whose  functions  were  to  cure 
diseased  souls  and  produce  conversions.  These  missionary 
philosophers  revived  the  spiritual  truths  of  religious  teachers 
of  the  past,  and  condensed  them  into  a  popular  form  to  suit 
the  age.  Some  philosophers,  like  some  theological  professors 
nowadays,  did  not  take  the  field  themselves,  but  reduced 
their  philosophy  to  a  practical  training  for  those  who  were 
to  carry  the  message  farther  afield.  Men  went  out  from  the 
lecture  halls  to  preach  self-examination  and  self-culture. 
They  brought  forth  things  new  and  old.  In  the  burden  of 
their  preaching  were  many  commonplaces — counsel  to  culti- 

>  1  Co  121. 

59 


60  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

vate  a  good  conscience,  to  act  as  if  conscious  that  God  sees 
all ;  virtue  is  its  own  reward,  and  is  attainable  by  all ;  sin  is 
its  own  punishment.  They  insisted  on  man's  inherent  dig- 
nity and  his  ability  to  save  himself  by  his  will.  They  knew 
no  original  sin.  Life  should  be  a  contemplation  of  death,  so 
that  men  may  die  without  fear.  This  preaching  was  not 
confined  to  the  upper  circles.  One  is  more  impressed  by  the 
enormous  amount  of  popular  preaching.  .  .  .  Preachers,  like 
emperors,  courted  popularity  with  the  masses.  .  .  .  The 
street  preaching  was  started  by  the  Cynics,  who  were 
exposed  to  as  much  ridicule  as  any  street  preachers  have 
ever  been." 

We  need  not  reproduce  the  names  mentioned  by  this 
writer ;  and  may  pass  to  his  last  sentences  on  this  topic : 

"  These,  and  such  apostles,  aimed  at  a  moral  and  religi- 
ous revival ;  they  believed  reformation  of  character  possible, 
and  within  the  reach  of  all.  They  gave  clear  expression 
to  certain  great  truths.  Who  can  say  how  many  conver- 
sions they  produced,  or  who  can  measure  their  influence  for 
righteousness  ?  They  claimed  to  be  ambassadors  of  God, 
and  they  executed  their  mission  as  well  as  they  could.  But 
their  truth  was  too  abstract:  they  misplaced  the  seat  of 
authority  ;  they  failed  to  realize  the  true  nature  and  extent 
of  human  sin.  Nevertheless  they  were  voices  crying  in 
the  wilderness  of  Paganism,  preparing  the  way  of  the 
Lord."i 

^  The  Environment  of  Early  Christianity,  pp.  74-78.  An  extract  may 
here  be  added,  dealing  with  the  same  subject,  from  Chantepie  de  la 
Saussaye:  Religionsgeschichte,  2  Band,  Dritte  Aufliige,  p.  505:  "The 
philosophers  in  this  period  exercised  the  deepest  influence  as  preachers  to 
the  people.  Actually  only  the  cynics  come  into  consideration  in  this 
respect.  Not  only  by  their  speeches,  which  one  has  often  compared  with 
the  sermons  of  the  Capuchins,  but  also  by  their  whole  life,  were  these 
'mendicant  monks  of  antiquity'  the  teachers  and  trainers  of  their  con- 
temporaries. In  this  period  cynicism  attained  a  far  greater  significance 
than  it  had  ever  possessed  in  ancient  Greece.  The  cynic  was  a  man  who, 
without  property  or  family,  free  in  life  as  in  death,  warned  and  exhorted  all 
men  in  free-spirited  speech,  a  herald  and  messenger  of  the  goJs,  a  brother  of 
all  men,  whose  soul-weal  he  bore  upon  his  heart.  Thus  Epictetus  (Arrian, 
Diatrib,  iii.  22)  described  him  in  ideal  light  as  an  overseer  of  other  men 
(the  rest  of  mankind),  who,  following  a  divine  vocation,  shewed  all  by  speech 
and  example  the  way  of  salvation.  History  offers  several  instances  of  the 
great  influence  of  the  cynics.  Thus  in  the  first  century  in  Rome  one  of  the 
best  known  personalities  was  the  cynic  Demetrius,  who  refused  with  scorn 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  61 

2.  This  popular  preaching  of  practical  philosophy  not 
only  produced  an  interest  in  the  discussion  of  questions 
of  religion  and  morals,  and  so  secured  for  the  Christian 
preachers  an  audience  ever  ready  to  listen  to  the  solution 
of  these  problems  they  could  offer ;  but  also  the  methods 
of  composition  and  delivery  did  pass  over  into  the  Christian 
Church,  and  so  determined  the  forms  of  Christian  preach- 
ing. In  ancient  Greece  young  men  were  prepared  for 
taking  their  part  in  public  life  by  a  course  of  instruction 
in  rhetoric,  the  art  of  effective  speech,  of  so  presenting  a 
political  course  or  a  legal  case  as  to  persuade  and  convince. 
The  teacher  of  rhetoric  illustrated  the  rules  he  gave  by 
"  model  compositions  of  his  own,  in  the  first  instance  exer- 
cises in  the  pleading  of  actual  causes,  and  accusations  or 
defences  of  real  persons,"  but  afterwards  they  lost  connec- 
tion with  the  law-courts  and  became  literary  exercises 
(/xeXerat),  arguments  about  topics  or  persons,  sometimes 
fictitious,  and  sometimes  taken  from  real  history.  Rhetoric 
thus  became  sophistic,  when  it  lost  touch  with  real  life,  and 
became  an  intellectual  indulgence.  It  was  again  rescued 
from  vain  artificiality  by  an  alliance  with  philosophy. 

"  It  threw  off  altogether,"  says  Hatch,  "  the  fiction  of  a 
law-court  or  an  assembly,  and  discussed  in  continuous  speech 
the  larger  themes  of  morality  or  theology.  Its  utterances 
were  not '  exercises,'  but '  discourses '  (StaXe^et?).  It  preached 
sermons.     It  created  not  only  a  new  literature  but  also  a 

large  sums  of  money  which  Caligula  offered  to  him,  with  whom  Thrasea 
conversed  in  his  last  hour,  who  last  of  all  opposed  Vespasian ;  but  he  did 
not  want  to  kill  the  '  barking  dog.'  Contempt  of  the  emperors  almost  be- 
longed to  the  office  of  the  cynic  ;  thus  one  of  them  even  ventured  publicly 
to  scold  Titus  on  account  of  Berenice.  There  were,  however,  besides  good 
also  some  bad  cynics,  who,  shameless  and  vain,  selfish  and  dishonest,  wore  as 
a  disguise  the  outer  tokens  of  the  cynic,  long  beard  and  staff,  in  order  to 
swindle  people  and  to  enrich  themselves.  A  specially  hostile  light  falls  on 
these  popular  preachers  in  Lucian,  who  makes  an  exception  only  for  the 
Athenian  Demouax.  Most  violently  Lucian  pursues  Peregrinus  Proteus 
whose  whole  life  he  describes  as  a  series  of  scandals,  and  whose  suicide  by 
fire  in  Olympia  he  mocks.  ...  In  any  case,  one  can  accord  far  less  belief  to 
the  controversial  writings  of  Lucian  than  to  the  idealising  description  of 
Epictetus." 


62  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

new  profession.  The  class  of  men  against  whom  Plato  had 
inveighed  had  become  merged  in  the  general  class  of  educa- 
tors :  they  were  specialized  partly  as  grammarians,  partly  as 
rhetoricians  ;  the  word  '  sophist,'  to  which  the  invectives  had 
failed  to  attach  a  permanent  stigma,  remained  partly  as  a 
generic  name,  and  partly  as  a  special  name  for  the  new  class 
of  public  talkers.  They  differed  from  philosophers  in  that 
they  did  not  mark  themselves  off  from  the  rest  of  the  world, 
and  profess  their  devotion  to  a  higher  standard  of  living,  by 
wearing  a  special  dress."  ^ 

Some  of  them  were  settled  in  one  place,  others  travelled 
about.  They  indulged  in  rhetorical  contests  with  one 
another,  especially  at  one  of  the  great  festivals,  and  were 
regarded  as  public  entertainers,  not  much  raised  above 
jugglers  and  soothsayers.  Dio  Chrysostom  carries  us 
back  through  the  centuries  with  his  vivid  picture  of  a 
scene  in  Corinth  at  the  Isthmian  games : 

"  You  might  hear  many  poor  wretches  of  sophists  shout- 
ing and  abusing  one  another,  and  their  disciples,  as  they  call 
them,  squabbling,  and  many  writers  of  books  reading  their 
stupid  compositions,  and  many  poets  singing  their  poems, 
and  many  jugglers  exhibiting  their  marvels,  and  many  sooth- 
sayers giving  the  meaning  of  prodigies,  and  ten  thousand 
rhetoricians  twisting  law-suits,  and  no  small  number  of 
traders  driving  their  several  trades."  ^  They  expected,  and 
used  their  arts  to  secure  applause ;  but  sometimes  suffered 
the  humiliation  of  signs  of  disapproval.  They  cared  not 
for  fame  only,  but  gold  also ;  and  some  of  them  were  very 
successful  in  securing  both.  The  successful  were  puffed  up 
with  conceit,  and  often  made  themselves  ridiculous  by  their 
pretensions.  "  The  common  epithet  for  them  is  aka^cov — a 
word  with  no  precise  English  equivalent,  denoting  a  cross 
between  a  braggart  and  a  mountebank.  But  the  real 
grounds  on  which  the  more  earnest  men  objected  to  them 
were  those  upon  which  Plato  had  objected  to  their  prede- 
cessors: their  making  a  trade  of  knowledge,  and  their 
unreality."  ^     "  They  preached,  not  because  they  were  in 

'  Hatch's  Hihbert  Lectures :  The  Influence  of  Greek  Ideas  a.nd  Usages 
upon  the  Christian  Church,  p.  91. 

2  Quoted  by  Hatch,  op.  cit.,  p.  94.  *  Ibid.,  p.  99. 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  63 

grim  earnest  about  the  reformation  of  the  world,  but  be- 
cause preaching  was  a  respectable  profession,  and  the  listen- 
ing to  sermons,  a  fashionable  diversion."  ^ 

Against  this  movement  there  was  a  counter-movement, 
especially  in  the  Stoic  school ;  and  we  are  justified  in 
assuming  that  among  the  sophists  there  were  serious  and 
earnest  men,  who  preached  because  they  believed,  and 
wished  to  share  this  good  with  others. 

3.  We  must  now  try  to  estimate  the  influence  of  this 
sophistic  on  the  Christian  Church.  (1)  In  the  Apostolic 
Age  there  was  an  "  inspired "  ministry  of  apostles  and 
prophets,  who  spoke  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy 
Ghost.  Their  preaching  was  primarily  by  divine  gift  and 
not  human  art,  although  human  talents  were  consecrated 
by  the  Spirit  in  His  operations.  Having  undoubtedly 
in  view  the  wisdom  of  the  pagan  sophist,  Paul  says  of 
himself :  "  My  speech  and  my  preaching  were  not  in 
persuasive  words  of  wisdom,  but  in  demonstration  of  the 
Spirit  and  of  power  ;  that  your  faith  should  not  stand  in 
the  wisdom  of  men,  but  in  the  power  of  God."  ^  Prophecy 
was  not  studied,  but  spontaneous,  utterance.  As  the  high 
tide  of  "  the  holy  enthusiasm  "  of  the  Apostolic  Age  ebbed 
(and  the  difference  can  be  seen  if  we  compare  the  Apostolic 
Fathers  with  the  apostles),  prophecy  gave  way  to  preach- 
ing. It  was  discredited  by  impostors,  who  pretended 
without  possessing  the  charism ;  and  it  was  at  last 
suppressed  by  ecclesiastical  authority  in  the  Montanist 
movement  as  a  peril  to  the  established  order  in  doctrine, 
worship,  and  polity.  It  must  be  admitted  that  in  it«  last 
phase  it  degenerated  into  fanaticism.  The  preaching, 
which  now  replaced  "  prophecy,"  became  the  regular 
function  of  the  bishop  ;  and  in  it  "  were  fused  together, 
on  the  one  hand,  teaching, — that  is,  the  tradition  and 
exposition  of  the  sacred  books  and  of  the  received  doctrine ; 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  exhortation, — that  is,  the  endeavour 
to  raise  men  to  a  higher  level  of  moral  and  spiritual  life." 
Not  depending  as  did  prophecy  on  "  inspiration,"  but  on 

'  Pp.  100,  101.  2  I  Co  2'*-  5, 


64  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

natural  aptitude,  developed  by  training  and  practice,  it 
could  be  efficiently  discharged  by  a  permanent  official,  and 
came  gradually  to  be  limited  to  the  official  class.  (2)  The 
form  of  the  homily,  the  term  applied  to  this  combination  of 
instruction  and  exhortation,  was  taken  from  the  sophists ; 
and  Christian  preachers,  in  their  methods,  followed  the 
example  thus  set  them.     The  term  itself, 

"  which  was  unknown  in  this  sense  in  pre-Christian  times, 
and  which  denoted  the  familiar  intercourse  and  direct 
personal  addresses  of  common  life,"  was  gradually  superseded 
"  by  the  technical  terms  of  the  schools — discourses,  disputa- 
tions, or  speeches"  (StaXefet?,  disputations).^  Even  the 
external  circumstances  became  similar.  "  The  preacher  sat 
in  his  official  chair :  it  was  an  exceptional  thing  for  him  to 
ascend  the  reader's  amho,  the  modern  '  pulpit ' ;  the  audience 
crowded  in  front  of  him,  and  frequently  interrupted  him 
with  shouts  of  acclamation.  The  greater  preachers  tried  to 
stem  the  tide  of  applause  which  surged  round  them :  again 
and  again  Chrysostom  begs  his  hearers  to  be  silent ;  what 
he  wants  is,  not  their  acclamations,  but  the  fruits  of  his 
preaching  in  their  lives."  ^ 

The  quotation  which  Dr.  Hatch  gives  from  one  of  the 
sermons  of  Chrysostom,  in  illustration  of  this  point,  has  so 
permanent  an  interest  that  it  must  be  reproduced  in  full : 

"  There  are  many  preachers  who  make  long  sermons :  if 
they  are  well  applauded,  they  are  as  glad  as  if  they  had 
obtained  a  kingdom  ;  if  they  bring  their  sermon  to  an  end  in 
silence,  their  despondency  is  worse,  I  may  almost  say,  than  hell. 
It  is  this  that  ruins  churches,  that  you  do  not  seek  to  hear 
sermons  that  touch  the  heart,  but  sermons  that  will  delight 
your  ears  with  their  intonation  and  the  structure  of  their 
phrases,  just  as  if  you  were  listening  to  singers  and  lute- 
players.  And  we  preachers  humour  your  fancies,  instead  of 
trying  to  crush  them.  We  act  like  a  father  who  gives  a  sick 
child  a  cake  or  an  ice,  just  because  he  asks  for  it,  and  takes  no 

*  Hatch,  op.  cit.,  pp.  108-109.  We  may  recall  Dr.  Parker's  definition 
of  preaching  as  "  dignified  conversation." 

2  Op.  cit.,  p.  110.  A  modern  parallel  may  be  mentioned.  The  Rev.  Dr. 
(now  Sir)  George  Adam  Smith  rebuked  an  outburst  of  applause  with  the 
words,  "  We  do  not  applaud,  but  obey,  the  Word  of  the  Lord." 


APOLOGISTS  AND  FATHERS  65 

pains  to  give  him  what  is  good  for  him ;  and  then  when  the 
doctors  blame  him,  says,  '  I  could  not  bear  to  hear  my  child 
cry.'  .  .  .  That  is  what  we  do  when  we  elaborate  beautiful 
sentences,  fine  combinations  and  harmonies,  to  please  and 
not  to  profit,  to  be  admired  and  not  to  instruct,  to  delight 
and  not  to  teach  you,  to  go  away  with  your  applause  in  our 
ears,  and  not  to  better  your  conduct.  Believe  me,  1  am  not 
speaking  at  random :  when  you  applaud  me  as  I  speak,  I 
feel  at  the  moment  as  it  is  natural  for  a  man  to  feel.  I  will 
make  a  clean  breast  of  it.  Why  should  I  not  ?  I  am 
delighted  and  overjoyed.  And  then  when  I  go  home  and 
reflect  that  the  people  who  have  been  applauding  me  have 
received  no  benefit,  and  indeed  that  whatever  benefit  they 
might  have  had  has  been  killed  by  the  applause  and  praises, 
1  am  sore  at  heart,  and  lament  and  fall  to  tears,  and  I  feel  as 
though  I  had  spoken  altogether  in  vain,  and  I  say  to  myself, 
What  is  the  good  of  all  your  labours,  seeing  that  your  hearers 
don't  want  to  reap  any  fruits  out  of  all  that  you  say  ?  And  I 
have  often  thought  of  laying  down  a  rule  absolutely  prohibit- 
ing all  applause,  and  urging  you  to  listen  in  silence."  ^ 

Mutatis  mutandis  this  passage  exposes  a  constant  peril  of 
the  Christian  preacher,  and  shows  that  not  only  the  forms, 
but  even  the  spirit  and  purpose,  of  pagan  sophistic  had  got 
into  the  Christian  Church  : 

"  Christian  preachers,  like  the  Sophists,  were  sometimes 
peripatetic ;  they  went  from  place  to  place,  delivering  their 
orations  and  making  money  by  delivering  them."  ^ 

Thus  was  preaching  prostituted  to  the  base  pursuit  of 
fame  and  wealth.  We  must  not  exaggerate  the  evil,  and 
suppose  that  all  Christian  preaching  sank  so  low  ;  there 
were  many  good  and  godly  men  who,  even  in  using  the 
same  forms  of  preaching,  were  seeking  to  serve  the  Lord 
alone. 

II. 

1.  Preaching  was  a  part  of  the  public  worship  of  the 
Christian  Church,  of  which  Justin  Martyr,  about  140  A.D., 
gives  us  an  account : 

"  On  Sunday,  a  meeting  of  all,  who  live  in  the  cities  and 

1  Op  cU.,  p.  111.  2  P.  112. 


66  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

villages,  is  heW,  and  a  section  from  the  Memoirs  of  the 
Apostles  (the  Gospels)  and  the  writings  of  the  Prophets  (the 
Old  Testament)  is  read,  as  long  as  the  time  permits.  When 
the  reader  has  finished,  the  president,  in  a  discourse,  gives  an 
exhortation  {ttjv  vovdecriav  koI  TrapaKXijabv)  to  the  imitation 
of  these  noble  things.  After  this  we  all  rise  in  common 
prayer.  At  the  close  of  the  prayer,  as  we  have  before 
described  (chapter  65),  bread  and  wine  with  water  are 
brought.  The  president  offers  prayer  and  thanks  for  them, 
according  to  the  power  given  him,  and  the  congregation 
responds  the  Amen.  Then  the  consecrated  elements  are 
distributed  to  each  one,  and  partaken,  and  are  carried  by  the 
deacons  to  the  houses  of  the  absent.  The  wealthy  and  the 
willing  then  give  contributions  according  to  their  free  will, 
and  this  collection  is  deposited  with  the  president,  who 
therewith  supplies  orphans  and  widows,  poor  and  needy, 
prisoners  and  strangers,  and  takes  care  of  all  who  are  in 
want.  We  assemble  in  common  on  Sundny,  because  this  is 
the  first  day,  on  which  God  created  the  world  and  the  light, 
and  because  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour  on  the  same  day  rose 
from  the  dead,  and  appeared  to  his  disciples."  ^ 

This  was  the  setting  of  the  Christian  preaching  within  the 
Church. 

2.  Outside  of  the  New  Testament,  the  oldest  Christian 
homily  which  has  come  down  to  us  is  the  so-called  Second 
Epistle  of  Clement,^  which  may  be  taken  to  represent  the 
transition  from  "  prophesying  "  to  "  preacliing." 

"The  work  known  as  the  Second  Epistle  of  Clement," 
says  Hatch,  "  is  perhaps  a  representative  of  the  form  which 
it  (prophesying)  took  in  the  middle  of  the  second  century ; 
but  though  it  is  inspired  by  a  genuine  enthusiasm,  it  is 
rather  more  artistic  in  its  form  than  a  purely  prophetic 
utterance  is  likely  to  have  been."  ^ 

Its  form  is  not  borrowed  from  the  rhetorical  schools,  but 

^  Apol.  i.  c.  67,  quoted  by  ScliafiF,  Ante-Nicene  Christianity,  pp.  223, 
224.     See  Ante-Nicene  Christian  Library,  vol.  ii.  65-66. 

*  Lightfoot's  S.  Clement  of  Rmne,  Appendix,  378-390  ;  or  Ante-Nicene 
Christian  Library  :  Recently  Discovered  MSS,  pp.  251-256;  or  The  Apostolic 
Fathers,  pt.  i.,  in  The  Ancient  and  Modern  Library  of  Theological  Litera- 
ture, pp.  195-204. 

3  Op.  cit.,  p.  106. 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  67 

appears  to  resemble  the  kind  of  speech  in  which  Stoic 
teachers  gave  their  practical  instructions.  Its  pervading 
enthusiasm,  of  which  Hatch  speaks,  rises  to  eloquence  only 
in  the  opening  passage,  in  which  he  states  the  motive  of 
Christian  living : 

"  that  we  ought  to  entertain  a  worthy  opinion  of  our 
salvation,  and  to  do  the  utmost  that  in  us  lies  to  express 
the  value  we  put  upon  it,  by  a  sincere  obedience  to  our 
Saviour  Christ  and  His  Gospel."^ 

Eo  12^  might  have  served  as  the  text;  but  the  Paul- 
ine tone  in  the  beginning  is  not  maintained  throughout 
the  sermon :  the  moralist,  and  even  legalist,  rather  than 
the  evangelical  spirit  prevails.  The  call  to  live  well  is 
enforced  by  prudential  considerations,  the  reward  or 
the  punishment  of  the  future  life.  The  need  of  repentance 
is  insisted  on.  A  peculiar  argument  for  sexual  purity  is 
advanced : 

"  If  we  say  that  the  flesh  is  the  Church,  and  the  spirit  is 
Christ,  then  verily  he  who  hath  dishonoured  the  flesh  hath 
dishonoured  the  Church  :  such  an  one,  therefore,  shall  not  be 
a  partaker  of  the  spirit  which  is  Christ."  ^ 

The  teaching  about  fasting  is  so  unevangelical  in  tone, 
that  Bishop  Lightfoot  conjectures  some  corruption  of  the 
text.  There  is  an  evident  reference  to  a  similar  statement 
in  Tob  12^-^;  and  it  is  possible  that  the  preacher's  words 
have  been  assimilated  to  that.  Be  that  as  it  may,  the 
passage  runs  as  follows : 

"  Beautiful  is  almsgiving,  even  as  repentance  from  sin. 
Better  is  Fasting  than  Prayer,  but  Almsgiving  is  better  than 
both.  Love  covereth  a  imdtiUide  of  dns.  But  prayer  out  of 
a  good  conscience  delivereth  from  death.  Blessed  is  every 
one  that  in  these  things  is  found  full,  for  almsgiving  re- 
moveth  the  burden  of  sin."  • 

The  sermon  rises  again  to  a  higher  note  in  the  closing 
ascription  : 

'  The  analysis  of  th*  sermon  in  The  Apostolic  Fathers,  part  i.  p.  193. 
•  The  Apostolic  Fathers,  part  i.  p.  202.  »  Pp.  202-203. 


68  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"  To  the  only  God  invisible,  Father  of  truth,  who  sent 
forth  to  us  the  Saviour  and  Prince  of  incorruption,  by  whom 
also  He  made  known  to  us  the  truth  and  the  heavenly  life, 
to  Him  be  glory  for  ever  and  ever.     Amen."  ^ 

3.  A  rapid  development  of  the  art  of  preaching  is 
indicated  by  a  sermon,  "  In  Sanctam  Theophaniam,"  which 
is  ascribed  to  Hippolytus^  (died  235),  and  which,  if  it  is 
indeed  his,  justifies  Eusebius'  description  of  him  as  dvrjp 
\67t09,  and  offers  an  interesting  proof  of  the  use  of  Greek 
in  the  worship  of  the  Eoman  congregation  in  the  earliest 
centuries.  While  it  is  very  loosely  attached  to  the  pas- 
sage which  was  read  before  it,  Mt  3^^'^^,  it  shows  unity 
and  progress  in  its  structure ;  and  is  an  excellent  example 
of  rhetorical  art.  While  it  does  not,  as  the  title  indi- 
cates, refer  to  the  feast  of  Epiphany,  in  its  praise  of 
and  invitation  to  Baptism,  it  points  to  an  approaching 
celebration  of  the  rite,  and  so  may  be  placed  before  Easter 
or  Whitsuntide.^  With  many  analogies,  showing  an  ap- 
preciation of  nature,  it  magnifies  beyond  measure  the 
worth  of  water,  to  which  so  exalted  a  function  is  assigned. 
A  brief  passage  to  illustrate  the  rhetorical  quality  of  this 
sermon  may  be  quoted : 

*'  Very  good  are  all  the  works  of  our  God  and  Saviour. 
.  .  .  And  what  more  requisite  gift,  again,  is  there  than 
the  element  (^uo-ew?)  of  water  ?  For  with  water  all  things 
are  washed  and  nourished,  and  cleansed  and  bedewed. 
Water  bears  the  earth,  water  produces  the  dew,  water 
exhilarates  the  vine,  water  matures  the  corn  in  the  ear, 
water  ripens  the  grape-cluster,  water  softens  the  olive,  water 
sweetens  the  palm-date,  water  reddens  the  rose  and  decks 
the  violet,  water  makes  the  lily  bloom  with  its  brilliant 
cups.  .  .  .  There  is  also  that  which  is  more  honourable  than 
all — the  fact  that  Christ,  the  Maker  of  all,  came  down  as 
the  rain  (Hos  vi.  3)  and  was  known  as  a  spring  (John  iv.  14), 
and  diffused  Himself  as  a  river  (John  vii. -^^SS),  and  was 
baptized  in  the  Jordan  (Mat  iii.  13).  For  you  have  just 
heard  how  Jesus  came  to  John,  and  was  baptized  by  him  in 

1  p.  204.  2  See  Ante-Nicene  Library,  vol.  ix.  pp.  80-87. 

»  See  HLH,  p.  8. 


APOLOGISTS   AND   FATHERS  69 

the  Jordan.  Oh  things  strange  beyond  compare!  How 
should  the  boundless  Eiver  (Ps  xlvi.  4)  that  makes  glad  the 
city  of  God  have  been  dipped  in  a  little  water  !  The  illimit- 
able Spring  that  bears  life  to  all  men,  and  has  no  end,  was 
covered  by  poor  and  temporary  waters !  He  who  is  present 
everywhere,  and  absent  nowhere — who  is  incomprehensible 
to  angels  and  invisible  to  men — comes  to  the  baptism  ac- 
cording to  His  own  good  pleasure.  When  you  hear  these 
things,  beloved,  take  them  not  as  if  spoken  literally,  but 
accept  them  as  presented  in  a  figure  (ceconomically)."  ^ 

Here  we  get  a  glimpse  of  the  preacher's  exegesis  and 
theology  as  well. 

4.  Although  not  usually  mentioned  among  preachers, 
Justin  Martyr,  who  died  about  166,  deserves  notice,  not 
only  for  his  own  worth,  but  also  because  he  is  a  proof,  as  is 
also  Origen,  that  preaching  was  not  as  yet  rigidly  confined 
to  the  clergy,  and  is  a  conspicuous  instance  of  the  apolo- 
getic activity  of  the  Church.  He  remained  a  layman,  and 
yet  none  of  his  contemporaries  rendered  as  great  a  service 
to  the  Christian  cause  as  he  did.  His  spirit  is  shown  in 
his  words : 

"  Every  one  who  can  preach  the  truth  and  does  not  preacn 
it,  incurs  the  judgment  of  God." 

Having  found  in  Christ  what  he  had  vainly  sought  in 
the  philosophies  of  his  age,  he  nevertheless  after  his  con- 
version retained  the  philosopher's  cloak,  and  so  found  easier 
access  to  the  philosophical  circles,  in  which  be  ever  sought 
to  witness  for  Christ.  From  his  First  and  Second  Apologies 
we  may  infer  how  in  conversation  and  discourse  he  de- 
fended his  fellow-Christians  against  heathen  calumnies  and 
persecutions,  and  sought  justice  for  them.  His  Dialogue 
shows  the  line  of  argument  from  prophecy  which  he  took 
against  Jewish  objections : 

"  In  his  Apologies  he  speaks  like  a  philosopher  to  philo- 
sophers ;  in  the  Bialogtie  as  a  believer  in  the  Old  Testament, 
with  a  son  of  Abraham.  The  disputation  lasted  two  days,  in 
a  gymnasium  just  before  a  voyage  of  Justin,  and  turned 

'  See  Ante-Niceue  Library,  vol.  ix.  pp.  80,  81. 


70  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

chiefly  on  two  questions,  how  the  Christians  could  profess  to 
serve  God,  and  yet  break  His  law,  and  how  they  could  believe 
in  a  human  Saviour  who  suffered  and  died.  Trypho,  whom 
Eusebius  calls  '  the  most  distinguished  among  the  Hebrews 
of  his  day,'  was  not  a  fanatical  Pharisee,  but  a  tolerant  and 
courteous  Jew,  who  evasively  confessed  at  last  to  have  been 
much  instructed,  and  asked  Justin  to  come  again,  and  to 
remember  him  as  a  friend."  ^ 

Justin  was  unwearied  in  his  labours  for  the  Gospel,  and 
travelled  far  and  wide  as  an  evangelist ;  and  at  last  in 
Eome  suffered  martyrdom.  He  is  a  notable  instance  of 
one  who  not  only  sought  to  edify  the  Church,  but  also  to 
convert  the  world. 

5.  In  the  North  African  Church  a  distinctive  type  of 
preaching  is  represented  by  Tertullian  (born  about  150,  and 
died  220  or  240).  Although  no  sermon  of  his  has  been 
preserved,  yet  his  writings  enable  us  to  represent  to  our- 
selves the  force  and  fire  of  his  speech.  He  knew  no  com- 
promise with  the  world  and  its  wisdom  in  his  passionate 
devotion  to  Christianity.  If  he  was  sometimes  carried  away 
in  violence  of  speech  against  error  or  sin,  he  could  also 
among  his  brethren  strike  the  tender,  humble  note.  In 
his  Apologeticus  he  gives  us  a  glimpse  into  the  Christian 
assembly : 

"  We  assemble  to  read  our  sacred  writings,  if  any  peculi- 
arity of  the  times  makes  either  fore-warning  or  reminiscence 
needful.  However  it  be  in  that  respect  with  the  sacred 
words,  we  nourish  our  faith,  we  animate  our  hope,  we  make 
our  confidence  more  stedfast ;  and  no  less  by  inculcations  of 
God's  precepts  we  confirm  good  habits."  ^ 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  he  was  able  in  all  these 
ways  to  edify  his  brethren.  To  North  Africa  also  belonged 
Cyprian  (born  about  200,  if  not  earlier ;  martyred  Sept.  14, 
258).  So  far  as  we  are  warranted  in  inferring  his  style 
of  preaching  from  his  writings,  his  language  was  more 
polished  and  accurate  than  Tertullian's ;  in  both  the  Latin 

*  Schaffs  Ante-Nicene  Christianity,  p.  718.     See  Ante-Nicene  Library, 
vol.  ii..  The  Writings  of  Justin  Martyr,  pp.  1-278. 

3  The  Ante-Nieene  Library,  Writings  of  Tertullian,  i,  118. 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  71 

of  North  Africa  shows  a  tendency  to  extravagance  and 
artificiality.  But  in  his  Epistle  to  Donatus  he  mentions 
the  need  of  a  simple  and  undecorated  style  in  the  preaching 
of  the  Gospel.^ 

6.  The  dominant  purpose  of  Origen  (born  185,  died 
253  or  254)  was  the  exposition  of  the  Scriptures,  that  he 
might  exhibit  in  them  a  wisdom  surpassing  the  philosophy 
of  the  Greeks.  His  method  was  that  of  allegorising.  He 
found  all  Christian  truth  in  the  Old  Testament  no  less  than 
in  the  New.  He  maintained  that  as  the  literal  sense  of 
the  Scriptures  was  often  unworthy  of  God,  and  impracti- 
cable for  man,  a  deeper  meaning  must  be  sought.  Besides 
the  somatic  (literal  or  historical)  meaning  he  discovered  a 
psychic  (doctrinal  and  practical),  and  beyond  that  even  a 
pneumatic  (mystical  or  speculative)  sense.^  But  in  spiritual- 
ising as  he  believed  the  letter  of  Scripture,  he  put  into  it 
"  all  sorts  of  foreign  ideas  and  irrelevant  fancies." 

In  his  exegetical  works  we  are  here  concerned  only  with 
his  Homilies  (ofilXiai),  "  hortatory  or  practical  applications  of 
Scripture  for  the  congregation.  They  were  delivered  ex- 
temporaneously, mostly  in  Caesarea  in  the  latter  part  of  his 
life,  and  taken  down  by  stenographers.  They  are  important 
also  to  the  history  of  pulpit  oratory.  But  we  have  them 
only  in  part,  as  translated  by  Jerome  and  Rufinus,  with 
many  unscrupulous  retrenchments  and  additions,  which 
perplex  and  are  apt  to  mislead  investigators."^ 

In  spite  of  this  allegorical  method  the  sermons  do  often 
exhibit  a  fine  moral  and  spiritual  insight.  A  specimen  of 
Origen's  method  may  be  given  from  his  sermon  on  Jer  16^^, 
which  has  the  added  interest,  that  it  describes  the  two 
ends  of  preaching,  the  converting  of  sinners,  and  the 
edifying  of  saints.  Connecting  with  the  prophetic  pas- 
sage the  call  of  the  disciples  to  become  fishers  of  men 
as  recorded  in  Matthew's  Gospel,  he  works  out  the  analogy 
in  detail : 

1  See  HLH,  p.  9  ;  DHPI,  p.  58  ;  KLP,  p.  100. 

'  See  ScbaflF's  Ante-Kicene  Cliristianity,  rol.  ii.  p.  521. 

»  Op.  cit.,  p.  7  05. 


72  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"  Thou  hast  come  up  from  the  sea,  falling  into  the  nets  of 
the  disciples  of  Jesus :  coming  forth  thou  changest  thy  soul, 
thou  art  no  longer  a  fish,  passing  thy  time  in  the  briny 
waves  of  the  sea ;  but  at  once  thy  soul  changes,  and  is  trans- 
formed, and  becomes  something  better  and  diviner  than  it 
formerly  was.  .  .  .  And  being  thus  transformed,  the  fish 
that  is  caught  by  the  fishers  of  Jesus,  leaving  the  haunts  of 
the  sea  makes  his  haunts  in  the  mountains,  so  that  he  no 
longer  needs  the  fishers  who  bring  him  up  from  the  sea,  but 
those  second  ones,  such  as  are  called  hunters,  who  hunt 
from  every  mountain  and  every  hill.  Thou,  therefore, 
having  come  up  from  the  sea,  forget  it,  come  up  upon  the 
mountains,  the  prophets,  and  upon  the  hills,  the  righteous, 
and  make  there  thy  haunts,  in  order  that  after  these  things, 
when  the  time  of  thy  departure  is  at  hand,  the  many  hunters 
may  be  sent  forth,  other  than  the  fishers.  But  who  could 
these  be  but  those  who  have  been  appointed  for  the  purpose 
of  receiving  the  souls  that  are  in  the  hills,  that  are  no  longer 
lying  below.  And  see  if  the  prophet  has  not  mystically 
called  out,  saying  these  things,  and  offering  this  thought, 
when  he  says,  '  Behold  I  send  many  fishers,  saith  the  Lord, 
and  they  shall  fish  them ;  and  afterwards  I  will  send  many 
hunters,  and  they  shall  hunt  them  upon  every  mountain, 
and  upon  every  hill.' "  ^ 


III. 

1.  The  victory  of  Christianity  over  paganism  in  the 
fourth  century  resulted  in  so  great  a  change  in  the 
character  of  the  congregations  in  the  Christian  Churches 
that  the  purpose,  content,  and  method  of  preaching  were 
necessarily  affected.  While  outwardly  more  powerful,  the 
Church  was  inwardly  less  pure.  A  multitude,  only 
partially  influenced  in  thought  and  life  by  the  Christian 
Gospel,  now  pressed  into  the  Church,  and  so  needed  to  be 
disciplined  in  Christian  faith  and  morals.  To  so  mixed 
a    congregation    the    Christian    preacher    had    to    address 

^  Quoted  in  DHPI,  pp.  53-54.  See  Origoiis  Opera  Omnia,  ed.  Caioli 
Delarue,  Tom  Tcrtius,  pp.  227-228.  The  Writings  of  Origen  have  been  in 
part  translated  in  the  Ante-Niceue  Christian  Library,  vols.  x.  and  xxiii. 
Edinburgh,  1869-1872. 


APOLOGISTS   AND   FATHERS  73 

himself,  not  only  expounding  and  enforcing  Christianity, 
but  also  exposing  and  attacking  pagan  superstition  and 
corruption.  It  was  a  stern  warfare,  which  had  to  be 
bravely  and  steadily  waged. 

(1)  In  order  to  be  influenced,  however,  the  people 
had  to  be  attracted  by  the  preacher.  Hence  he  was 
tempted  to  prostitute  his  sacred  calling  to  secure  popu- 
larity. In  the  Greek-speaking  congregations  there  was  a 
keen  taste  for  rhetoric,  and  the  Christian  preachers  had  to 
compete  with  the  Sophists,  who  have  already  been  spoken 
of.  This  tendency  was  confirmed  by  the  education  of  the 
clergy,  in  which  instruction  in  the  art  of  rhetoric  had  had 
a  large  place.  It  was  inevitable  that  Christian  preaching 
should  be  more  and  more  affected  by  the  popular  demand, 
and  the  clerical  aptitude  for  rhetorical  display.  In  a 
genuinely  and  intensely  Christian  personality  the  art  was 
subordinated  to  the  purpose  of  Christian  preaching  ;  but 
men  of  shallower  experience  and  weaker  character  became 
the  slaves  rather  than  the  masters  of  the  tool  thus  put 
into  their  hands.  It  is  a  proof  of  the  cleansing  and 
renewing  power  of  the  Christian  faith  that  the  pulpit  of 
that  age  was  not  more  secularised  even  than  it  was.  This 
dangerous  tendency  is  seen  at  its  worst  in  one  class  of 
pulpit  discourse,  panegyrics  of  the  living,  in  which  fulsome 
flattery  breaks  all  bounds  of  Christian  judgment. 

(2)  One  of  the  greatest  safeguards  against  this  peril 
was  the  close  connection  still  maintained  between  the 
reading  of  the  Scriptures  and  the  sermon.  In  spite  of  the 
elaboration  of  the  liturgy,  the  lesson  kept  its  place  in 
public  worship,  and  a  fixed  selection  of  passages,  called 
pericopes,  was  gradually  introduced.  While  the  sermon 
might  be  based  on  the  pericope,  it  was  not  bound  to  it. 
Some  of  the  great  preachers,  such  as  Chrysostom  and 
Augustine,  dealt  with  whole  books  in  consecutive  portions. 
On  a  festival,  an  appropriate  or  customary  text  was  chosen. 
Despite  the  allegorical  method  of  interpretation,  and  the 
rhetorical  forms  of  the  sermons,  the  moral  and  religious 
wealth  of    the    Scriptures    preserved    Christian  preaching 


74  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

from  the  artificiality  and  futility  into  which  it  might  have 
fallen. 

(3)  Unless  in  the  homilies,  where  a  verse-by- verse 
exposition  of  a  portion  of  Scripture  was  given,  sermons 
assumed  a  more  definite  form,  a  theme  gave  unity  to  the 
whole.  Doctrinal  and  practical  problems  came  to  be 
discussed.  At  the  great  festivals,  the  sermon  was  neces- 
sarily closely  connected  with  the  Scripture  record  of  the 
event  being  celebrated  ;  but  even  here  the  Greek  orators 
allowed  themselves  to  be  less  controlled  by  the  details  of 
the  narrative  than  did  Augustine.  The  reading  of  the 
records  of  martyrdom  on  saints'  days,  combined  with  a 
panegyric,  further  loosened  the  connection  of  the  sermon 
with  the  Scripture  lesson.  If  we  may  apply  a  modern 
distinction,  preaching  tended  to  become  less  expository 
and  more  topical.  The  Old  Testament  receded  and  the 
New  Testament  advanced  in  favour  with  preachers.  The 
prophets  and  the  psalms  were  still  preached  on  in  the 
current  Christian  interpretation.  In  contrast  with  the 
cosmology  of  paganism,  the  record  of  the  Creation  received 
attention.  Some  of  the  Old  Testament  stories  still 
attracted,  and  the  Old  Testament  types  of  Christ  were 
diligently  sought  after  ;  but  the  Four  Gospels  held  the 
first  place,  and  the  Epistles  the  second,  in  preaching. 

(4)  The  Scriptures,  however,  did  not  alone  give  the 
content  to  sermons.  It  was  the  age  of  the  Christological 
controversies,  and  preachers  sought  in  their  sermons  to 
justify  from  the  Scriptures  the  theological  views  which 
they  themselves  held.  While  a  distinct  confession  of  the 
faith  of  the  Church  is  desirable,  and  its  exposition  and 
defence  in  the  pulpit  are  legitimate,  there  is  always  the 
peril  that  moral  and  religious  interests  may  be  sacrificed 
to  dogmatic,  and  that  the  manifold  wealth  of  the  Scrip- 
tures may  not  be  adequately  used  for  the  enrichment  of 
Christian  experience  and  character.  In  the  East  especially 
there  was  an  undue  prominence  of  the  controversial 
theological  interest.  While  in  the  disputes  about  the 
person  of  Christ  vital  religious  interests  were  involved,  yet 


APOLOGISTS  AND    FATHERS  75 

the  conception  of  salvation  which  dominated  Greek  thought 
detached  Christ's  work,  and  so  His  person  also,  from  the 
essential  moral  interests.  The  quasi-physical  deification  of 
man,  for  which  the  Son  of  God  was  represented  as  having 
assumed  human  nature,  was  unrelated  to  holy  living. 
Morality  was  conceived  in  the  legal  rather  than  in  the 
evangelical  way,  and  so  the  sermons  on  Christian  morals 
did  not  magnify  divine  grace  in  asserting  human  duty,  as 
Augustine  did.  In  the  East  the  extremes  of  genuine 
eloquence  and  artificial  rhetoric  were  both  found.  In  the 
West  much  less  value  was  attached  to  oratory  by  preachers 
or  hearers ;  and  it  is  rec9rded  that  some  bishops  had  the 
doors  closed,  so  as  to  prevent  the  departure  of  most  of  the 
congregation  before  the  sermon.^ 

2.  Great  as  were  the  services  of  Athanasius  (296-372) 
to  Christian  truth,  we  know  too  httle  of  him  as  a  preacher 
to  deal  with  him  as  such.^  The  three  theologians  who 
formulated  the  orthodox  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  in  the 
East  were  also  noted  preachers,  and  of  their  powers  we 
have  abundant  evidence.  (1)  Of  Basil  the  Great  of  Ccesarea 
(330-379),  Van  Oosterzee's  estimate  deserves  quotation: 

"  Apart  from  the  consideration  of  his  excellent  character 
and  his  ceaseless  zeal  in  the  defence  of  the  orthodox 
Christology,  he  shines  as  an  ecclesiastical  orator  especially, 
by  the  rare  purity  of  his  style  and  diction,  animation  of 
delivery,  vivacity  of  conception,  and  abundance  of  manifold 
knowledge,  as  well  of  the  human  heart  as  of  the  nature 
around  him.  Of  the  last  kind  of  knowledge,  instances  are 
to  be  found  in  his  renowned  Nine  Homilies  on  the  six-days' 
work  of  creation  {Hexaemeron)  ;  of  the  other  in  his  four-and- 
twenty  discourses  on  moral  subjects.  .  .  .  Basil  shines  even 
more  by  the  magnificent  and  nervous  character  of  his  preach- 
ing than  by  its  softness  and  tenderness."  ^ 

(2)  The  introduction  and  the  conclusion  of  the  second 
Homily  in  the  Hexaemeron  may  be  quoted  as  illustrating 
the  structure  of  his  sermons  as  well  as  his  style : 

»  See  HLH,  pp.  11-15  ;  DHPI,  p.  60  f.  ;  KLP,  pp.  73-80. 
^  Home,  ofp.  cit.,  pp.  113-129,  deals  with  Athanasius  as  an  instance  of  the 
royalty  of  the  pulpit.  ^  qpt,  p.  93. 


76  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"  In  the  few  words  (Gn  1^)  which  have  occupied  us  this 
morning  we  have  found  such  a  depth  of  thought  that  we 
despair  of  penetrating  further.  If  such  is  the  forecourt  of 
the  sanctuary,  if  the  portico  of  the  temple  is  so  grand  and 
magnificent,  if  the  splendour  of  its  beauty  thus  dazzles  the 
eyes  of  the  soul,  what  will  be  the  holy  of  holies  ?  Who 
will  dare  to  try  to  gain  access  to  the  innermost  shrine  ? 
Who  will  look  into  the  secrets  ?  To  gaze  into  it  is  indeed 
forbidden  us,  and  langua-e  is  powerless  to  express  what  the 
mind  conceives.  However,  since  there  are  rewards,  and 
most  desirable  ones,  reserved  by  the  just  Judge  for  the 
intention  alone  of  doing  good,  do  not  let  us  hesitate  to  con- 
tinue our  researches.  Although  we  may  not  attain  to  the 
truth,  if,  with  the  help  of  the  Spirit,  we  do  not  fall  away 
from  the  meaning  of  Holy  Scriptures,  we  shall  not  deserve  to 
be  rejected,  and,  with  the  help  of  grace,  we  shall  contribute 
to  the  edification  of  the  Church  of  God." 

Then  follows   an  exposition  of  Gn   1^'^  clause  by  clause. 
The  conclusion  is  suggested  by  the  last  clause  discussed  : 

"  But  whilst  I  am  conversing  with  you  about  the  first 
evening  of  the  world,  evening  takes  me  by  surprise  and  puts 
an  end  to  my  discourse.  May  the  Father  of  the  true  light, 
Who  has  adorned  day  with  celestial  light,  Who  has  made  to 
shine  the  fires  which  illuminate  us  during  the  night,  Who 
reserves  for  us  in  the  peace  of  a  future  age  a  spiritual  and 
everlasting  light,  enlighten  your  hearts  in  the  knowledge  of 
truth,  keep  you  from  stumbling,  and  '  grant  that  you  may 
walk  honestly  as  in  the  day.'  Thus  shall  you  shine  as  the 
sun  in  the  midst  of  the  glory  of  the  saints,  and  I  shall  glory 
in  you  in  the  day  of  Christ,  to  Whom  belong  all  glory  and 
power  for  ever  and  ever.     Amen."  ^ 

3.  His  funeral  sermon  was  preached  by  his  friend, 
Gregory  Nazianzen  (330-390),  who,  in  spite  of  inferior 
natural  gifts  and  unfavourable  circumstances,  to  his  own 
surprise,  won  a  commanding  position  as  a  preacher  in 
securing  the  triumph  of  orthodoxy.  (1)  The  secret  of  his 
combined  power  and  charm  may  be  found  in  his  own 
confession  : 

"  My  only  affection  was  eloquence,  and  long  did  I  apply 

^  Nicene  and  Post-Nicene  Fathers,  vol.  viii.  pp.  58  and  65.    Oxford,  1895. 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  77 

myself  to  it  with  all  my  might ;  but  I  have  laid  it  down  at 
the  feet  of  Christ,  and  subjugated  it  to  the  great  word 
of  God."  1 

His  rhetorical  art  is  best  shown  in  his  sermons  on  special 
occasions,  but  the  defects  of  that  art  are  also  there 
betrayed — extravagance,  artificiality,  prolixity.  (2)  A 
sample  of  his  style  may  be  given  from  his  eulogy  on  his 
friend  Basil : 

"  Should  we  even  pursue  this  inquiry,  who,  so  far  as  my 
knowledge  extends — and  my  acquaintance  with  him  has 
been  most  intimate — who  was  so  delightful  as  Basil  in 
company  ?  Who  was  more  graceful  in  narration  ?  Who 
more  delicate  in  raillery  ?  Who  more  tender  in  reproof, 
making  neither  his  censure  harshness,  nor  his  mildness 
indulgence,  but  avoiding  excess  in  both,  and  in  both  follow- 
ing the  rule  of  Solomon,  who  assigns  to  everything  its  season  ? 
But  what  is  all  this  compared  with  his  extraordinary 
eloquence  and  that  resistless  might  of  his  doctrine,  which 
has  made  its  own  the  extremities  of  the  globe  ?  We  are 
still  lingering  about  the  base  of  the  mountain,  as  at  great 
distance  from  its  summit.  We  still  push  our  bark  across  the 
strait,  leaving  the  broad  and  open  sea.  For  assuredly,  if 
there  ever  was,  or  ever  shall  be,  a  trumpet,  sounding  far  out 
upon  the  air,  or  a  voice  of  God  encompassing  the  world,  or 
some  unheard  of  and  wondrous  shaking  of  the  earth,  such 
was  his  voice,  such  his  intellect,  as  far  transcending  that  of 
his  fellows  as  man  excels  the  nature  of  the  brute.  Who 
more  than  he  purified  his  spirit,  and  thus  qualified  himself 
to  unfold  the  Divine  oracles  ?  Who,  more  brightly  illumi- 
nated with  the  light  of  knowledge,  has  explored  the  dark 
things  of  the  spirit,  and,  with  the  aid  of  God,  surveyed  the 
mysteries  of  God  ?  And  who  has  possessed  a  diction  that 
was  a  more  perfect  interpreter  of  his  thoughts  ?  Not  with 
him,  as  with  the  majority,  was  there  a  failure,  either  of 
thought  sustaining  his  diction,  or  of  language  keeping 
pace  with  thought ;  but,  alike  distinguished  in  both,  he 
shewed  himself  as  an  orator  throughout,  self-consistent  and 
complete."  ^ 


1  OPT,  p.  94. 

^  CME,  vi.  p.  301.     See  Nicene  and  Post-Kicene  Fathers,  vii.  p.  417. 


78  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

4.  The  younger  brother  of  Basil,  Gregory  of  Nyssa  (c.  3 3  5- 
395),  although  inferior  as  a  preacher,  must  also  be  men- 
tioned. (1)  He  was  so  great  a  lover  of  oratory,  that  for  a 
time  he  forsook  the  service  of  the  Church  for  the  study  of 
rhetoric,  but  on  his  return  made  the  art  he  had  acquired  so 
effective  in  the  defence  of  orthodoxy  that  immense  crowds 
were  attracted  by  his  preaching.  In  moral  and  religious 
insight,  as  well  as  fineness  of  feeling,  he  was  not  the  equal 
of  either  his  brother  or  their  common  friend.  He  often 
falls  into  irrelevancy  and  oratorical  display,  although  his  in- 
tellectual powers  were  conspicuous.  In  his  fifteen  Homilies 
on  The  Song  of  Songs  he  not  only  employs  the  allegorical 
method,  but  in  his  introduction  expressly  justifies  it  in 
opposition  to  the  Antiochian  school,  which  insisted  on  the 
literal  interpretation. 

(2)  A  sample  may  be  given  from  his  sermon  on  the 
Baptism  of  Christ : 

"  Abraham's  servant  is  sent  to  make  the  match,  so  as  to 
secure  a  bride  for  his  master,  and  finds  Eebekah  at  the  well ; 
and  a  marriage  that  was  to  produce  the  race  of  Christ  had 
its  beginning  and  first  covenant  in  water.  Yes,  and  Isaac 
himself  also,  when  he  was  ruling  his  flocks,  digged  wells 
at  all  parts  of  the  desert,  which  the  aliens  stopped  and  filled 
up,  for  a  type  of  all  those  impious  men  of  later  days  who 
hindered  the  grace  of  Baptism,  and  talked  loudly  in  their 
struggle  against  the  truth.  Yet  the  martyrs  and  the  priests 
overcame  them  by  digging  the  wells,  and  the  gift  of  Baptism 
overflowed  the  whole  world.  According  to  the  same  force 
of  the  text,  Jacob  also,  hastening  to  seek  a  bride,  met 
Rachel  unexpectedly  at  the  well.  And  a  great  stone  lay 
upon  the  well,  which  a  multitude  of  shepherds  were  wont  to 
roll  away  when  they  came  together,  and  then  gave  water  to 
themselves,  and  to  their  flocks.  But  Jacob  alone  rolls  away 
the  stone,  and  waters  the  flocks  of  his  spouse.  The  thing 
is,  I  think,  a  dark  saying,  a  shadow  of  what  should 
come.  For  what  is  the  stone  that  is  laid,  but  Christ  Him- 
self ?  for  of  Him  Isaiah  says, '  And  I  will  lay  in  the  founda- 
tions of  Sion  a  costly  stone,  precious,  elect ' ;  and  Daniel 
likewise,  '  A  stone  was  cut  out  without  hands,'  that  is, 
Christ  was  born  without  a  man.     For  as  it  is  a  new  and 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  79 

marvellous  thing  that  a  stone  should  be  cut  out  of  the  rock 
without  a  hewer  or  stone-cutting  tools,  so  it  is  a  thing 
beyond  all  wonder  that  an  offspring  should  appear  from  an 
unwedded  Virgin.  There  was  lying,  then,  upon  the  well  the 
spiritual  stone,  Christ,  concealing  in  the  deep  and  in  mystery 
the  laver  of  regeneration  which  needed  much  time — as  it 
were  a  long  rope — to  bring  it  to  light.  And  none  rolled 
away  the  stone  save  Israel,  who  is  mind  seeing  God.  But 
he  both  draws  up  the  water  and  gives  drink  to  the  sheep  of 
Rachel ;  that  is,  he  reveals  the  hidden  mystery,  and  gives 
living  water  to  the  flock  of  the  Church."  ^ 

5.  The  greatest  orator  of  the  Greek  Church,  however, 
was  John  Chrysostom'^  (Golden-Mouth,  347—407)  (1)  As 
a  fearless  preacher  of  truth  and  righteousness  he  enjoyed 
popular  favour,  but  incurred  a  hostility  in  high  quarters, 
which  led  at  last  to  his  death  as  he  was  journeying  to  a 
distant  place  of  exile.  As  an  exegete  he  is  distinguished 
by  his  application  of  the  better  methods  of  the  Antiochian 
school  in  opposition  to  the  extravagances  of  the  alle- 
gorising fashion  of  Alexandria.  As  an  orator,  though 
not  entirely  free  of  the  defects  of  the  rhetorical  method, 
in  which  he  had  been  thoroughly  trained  by  Libanius, 
his  natural  gifts  were  entirely  consecrated  by  his  Christian 
devotion.  He  set  forth  his  ideal  of  the  Christian  ministry 
in  his  work  on  The  Priesthood  (De  Sacerdotio),  in  which  he 
reveals  the  secret  of  his  power  as  a  preacher  in  the  words 
ipya^6fievo<;  rov^  Xoyov^  a><;  av  apetrue  tw  de(p  ("  let  him 
frame  his  discourse  so  as  to  please  God ")}  A  passage 
has  already  been  quoted  which  shows  that  he  recognised 
the  dangers  of  popularity,  and  also  how  he  sought  to  guard 
himself  against  them.^  .  He  was  more  concerned  about 
moral  purity  than  theological  orthodoxy ;  and  while  he 
was  not  uninfluenced  by  the  prervalent  asceticism,  he  occu- 

1  NiceTie  and  Post-Nieene  Fathers,  v.  p.  521.  It  is  interesting  to  com- 
pare this  passage  with  that  quoted  from  Hippolytus,  as  showing  how 
differently  imagination  can  play  about  the  same  subject. 

-  St.  Chrysostom  of  the  Priesthood,  translated  by  Bunce,  London,  1759, 
p.  301. 

'  See  pp.  64-65. 


80  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

pied  himself  for  the  most  part  with  the  virtues,  which  do 
in  reaUty  belong  to  the  Christian  ideal.  He  frankly  and 
boldly  attacked  the  common  vices  of  his  age,  and  showed 
no  respect  of  persons.  Even  in  public  affairs  he  intervened 
at  some  personal  risk.  As  he  himself  had  deeply  experi- 
enced, so  he  could  with  intimate  knowledge  and  delicate 
insight,  present  the  "  inner  life  "  of  the  Christian.  As  that 
life  was  nourished  by,  so  his  theology  was  rooted  in,  the 
Scriptures,  of  which  he  had  the  knowledge  of  a  scholar, 
having  made  himself  familiar  even  with  Hebrew.  He  was 
most  skilful  in  the  practical  application  of  the  teaching  of 
the  Bible;  but  we  do  miss  a  full  understanding  of  the 
Pauline  doctrine  of  grace.  The  stories  in  the  Bible  ap- 
pealed to  his  aesthetic  sense,  and  he  used  his  art  to  present 
to  his  hearers  some  of  the  outstanding  figures  and  events  in 
the  sacred  narratives ;  but  it  must  be  admitted  that  his 
art  did  not  always  restrain  him  from  excess,  and  the 
light  and  shade  are  overdone. 

(2)  His  sermons  were  of  two  kinds.  In  his  Homilies 
he  dealt  not  only  with  long  passages  of  Scripture,  but  even 
with  whole  books  (Genesis,  Psalms,  Matthew,  John,  Paul's 
letters  to  Romans,  Corinthians,  Galatians,  Ephesians,  Timothy, 
Titus) ;  excellent  as  these  are  both  in  exposition  and  applica- 
tion, they  lack  artistic  structure.  In  his  topical  (theoristic) 
addresses  ("  against  the  Protopaschites,"  "  concerning  the 
statues,"  *'  against  the  Jews  ")  he  has  a  text,  and  uses  it, 
but  his  sermon  is  not  an  explanation  of  it.^  Nevertheless 
it  is  in  the  second  kind  of  sermon  that  we  can  study 
better  the  rush  of  his  eloquence.  He  paid  great  atten- 
tion to  the  introduction,  and  displayed  a  wealth  of  pictures, 
comparisons,  epigrams,  observations  on  life,  which  arrested 
attention  and  secured  interest.  He  could  use  the  inci- 
dent of  the  moment  most  happily  to  catch  the  mind  of 
his  hearers,  as  when  he  turned  the  attention  of  his  audi- 
ence, disturbed  by  the  kindling  of  the  lights  of  the 
church,  to  the  Light  of  the  World.      He  usually  closed 

1  As  we  shall  afterwards  try  to  show,  the  syuthosis  of  the  sermon  should 
be  based  oo  the  analysis  ot  the  text. 


APOLOGISTS  AND  FATHERS  81 

his  sermons  with  a  doxology.  While  he  possessed  the 
two  necessary  qualities  of  the  orator,  abundance  and 
order,  he  had  more  of  the  first  than  the  second,  and 
sometimes  missed  his  full  effect  by  his  lack  of  modera- 
tion.^ 

(3)  One  passage  may  be  quoted  which  illustrates  his 
treatment  of  a  vice : 

"There  is  nothing  more  cruel,  nothing  more  infamous, 
than  the  usury  so  common  amongst  men.  The  usurer  traffics 
on  the  misfortunes  of  others ;  he  enriches  himself  on  their 
poverty,  and  then  he  demands  his  usury,  as  if  they  were 
under  a  great  obligation  to  him.  He  is  heartless  to  his 
creditor,  but  is  afraid  of  appearing  so ;  when  he  pretends 
that  he  has  every  inclination  to  oblige,  he  crushes  him  the 
more  and  reduces  him  to  the  last  extremity.  He  offers  one 
hand,  and  with  the  other  pushes  him  down  the  precipice. 
He  offers  to  assist  the  shipwrecked,  and  instead  of  guiding 
them  safely  into  port  he  steers  them  among  the  reefs  and 
rocks.  Where  your  treasure  is,  there  is  your  heart,  says  our 
Saviour.  Perhaps  you  may  have  avoided  many  evils  arising 
from  avarice ;  but  still,  if  you  cherish  an  attachment  to  this 
odious  vice,  it  will  be  of  little  use,  for  you  will  still  be  a 
slave,  free  as  you  fancy  yourself  to  be ;  and  you  will  fall 
from  the  height  of  heaven  to  that  spot  wherein  your  gold  is 
hidden,  and  your  thoughts  will  still  complacently  dwell  on 
money,  gains,  usury,  and  dishonest  commerce.  What  is  more 
miserable  than  such  a  state  ?  There  is  not  a  sadder  tyranny 
than  that  of  a  man  who  is  a  willing  subject  to  this  furious 
tyrant,  destroying  all  that  is  good  in  him,  namely,  the 
nobility  of  the  soul.  So  long  as  you  have  a  heart  basely 
attached  to  gains  and  riches,  whatsoever  truths  may  be  told 
you,  or  whatsoever  advice  may  be  given  you,  to  secure  your 
salvation  —  all  will  be  useless.  Avarice  is  an  incurable 
malady,  an  ever-burning  fire,  a  tyranny  which  extends  far 
and  wide ;  for  he  who  in  this  life  is  the  slave  of  money  is 
loaded  with  heavy  chains  and  destined  to  carry  far  heavier 
chains  in  the  life  to  come."  ^ 


»  See  HLH,  pp.  21-24  ;  OPT,  pp.  95-99  ;  KHP,  pp.  65-69  ;  DHPI,  pp. 
86-93.  Many  of  his  sermons  have  been  translated  in  The  Oxford  Library  of 
the  Fathers. 

2  CME,  iii.  pp.  309,  810. 


82  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

IV. 

While  the  East  was  engaged  in  the  trinitarian  and 
Christological  controversies,  and  preaching  was  affected  by 
the  dogmatic  interest,  in  the  West  attention  was  more 
directed  to  Soteriology ;  and  so  preaching  was  more 
evangelical  and  practical.  Begun  by  TertuUian,  advanced 
by  Ambrose,  this  movement  reached  its  culmination  in 
Augustine,  whose  influence  persisted  not  only  in  the  subse- 
quent preaching  of  the  Catholic  Church,  but  even  through 
the  Reformers  in  Protestantism. 

1.  A  few  sentences  must  suffice  for  Ambrose  (340-397)  ^ 
before  we  turn  to  "  the  Chrysostom  of  the  West,"  whose 
conversion  was  one  of  the  worthiest  fruits  of  his  labours. 
(1)  Dependent  as  he  was  for  much  of  his  matter  on  Philo, 
and  especially  Basil,  Ambrose  nevertheless  in  his  sermons, 
which  for  the  most  part  were  worked  up  into  treatises, 
displayed  a  genuinely  independent  Christian  personality, 
practical,  forceful,  constant,  courageous,  with  a  fuller  under- 
standing of  the  secret  of  saving  grace  than  was  shown  by 
the  Greek  fathers.  One  characteristic  incident  may  be 
mentioned  regarding  the  truly  great  bishop.  When  the 
Emperor  Theodosius,  who  had  shed  the  blood  of  many 
innocent  persons  in  Thessalonica,  sought  communion,  the 
bishop  refused  with  the  words : 

"  How  wilt  thou  lift  up  in  prayer  the  hands  still  dripping 
with  the  blood  of  the  murdered  ?  How  wilt  thou  receive 
with  such  hands  the  most  holy  body  of  the  Lord  ?  How 
wilt  thou  bring  to  thy  mouth  his  precious  blood  ?  Get  thee 
away,  and  dare  not  to  heap  crime  upon  crime." 

The  Emperor  was  so  impressed  that  he  submitted  to  the 
bishop's  discipline.^ 

(2)  Augustine's  testimony  must  be  added : 

"  To  Milan  I  came,  to  Ambrose  the  Bishop,  known  to  the 
whole  world  as  among  the  best  of  men,  Thy  devout  worship- 
per ;  whose  eloquent  discourse  did  then  plentifully  dispense 

1  HLH,  i>p.  27-28  ;  DHPI,  pp.  98-100  ;  KHP,  101-102. 
*  SchafTs  Nicene  and  Post-Nicene  Christiavity,  pp.  963-964. 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  83 

unto  Thy  people  the  fatness  of  Thy  *  wheat,'  the  gladness  of 
Thy  '  oil,'  and  the  sober  inebriation  of  Thy  '  wine '  (Ps  iv.  7, 
civ.  15).  To  him  was  I  unknowingly  led  by  Thee,  that  by 
him  I  might  knowingly  be  led  to  Thee.  That  man  of  God 
received  me  as  a  father,  and  shewed  me  an  Episcopal  kind- 
ness on  my  coming.  Thenceforth  I  began  to  love  him,  at 
first  indeed  not  as  a  teacher  of  the  truth,  of  which  in  Thy 
Church  I  wholly  despaired,  but  as  a  person  kind  towards 
myself.  And  I  listened  diligently  to  him  preaching  to  the 
people,  not  with  that  intent  I  ought,  but,  as  it  were,  trying 
his  eloquence,  whether  it  answered  the  fame  thereof,  or 
Howed  fuller  or  lower  than  was  reported ;  and  I  hung  on  his 
words  attentively ;  but  with  regard  to  the  matter  was  but  a 
careless  and  scornful  bystander ;  and  I  was  delighted  with 
the  sweetness  of  his  discourse,  which,  as  far  as  concerns 
manner,  was  more  learned,  but  less  sparkling  and  flattering 
than  that  of  Faustus.  Of  the  matter,  however,  there  was  no 
comparison,  for  the  one  was  wandering  amid  Manichaean 
falsehoods,  but  the  other  most  wholesomely  taught  salva- 
tion. But  *  salvation  is  far  from  sinners '  (Ps  cxix.  155), 
such  as  I  then  stood  before  him ;  and  yet  I  was  drawing 
nearer  by  little  and  little,  and  unconsciously."  ^ 

2.  We  may  now  turn  to  Augustine  (354-430)  himself.^ 

(1)  " '  If  I  might  leave  one  bequest,'  said  Dr.  Pusey, '  to 
the  rising  generation  of  the  clergy,  who  have,  what  I  have 
only  had  incidentally,  the  office  of  preachers,  it  would  be  in 
addition  to  the  study  of  Holy  Scripture,  which  they  too 
studied  night  and  day,  study  the  fathers,  especially  St. 
Augustine.'  No  truer  word  could  have  been  spoken.  There 
is  something  so  essentially  great  and  broad  about  the  soul 
of  a  man  like  this,  that,  however  stormy  his  life,  however 
fierce  the  conflict  through  which  he  passed,  however  intense 
the  controversies  in  which  he  was  engaged,  we  seem  to  stand 
on  the  mountain-top  of  truth  as  we  take  our  place  at  his 
side,  with  the  heaven  clear  above  us  and  the  mists  rolling 
beneath  our  feet.  Of  the  other  two  illustrious  Africans,  to 
whom  he  stands  in  direct  succession,  Tertullian  has  the 
fervour  of  Augustine  without  the  serenity,  Cyprian  the 
saintliness  without  the  breadth."  ^ 

^  Con/essio7iSy  v.  13. 

2  See  HLH,  pp.  28-42  ;  KHP,  pp.  103-109  ;  DHLI,  pp.  100-104. 
Simpson's   Preachers    and    Teachers,    p.    80.      Many    of    Au<mgtine's 
Homilies  have  been  translated  in  The  Oxford  Library  of  the  Fathers. 


84  THE  CHRISTIAN .  PREACHER 

He  also  stands  in  the  great  evangelical  succession  between 
Paul  and  Luther,  and  so  belongs  to  Protestantism  no  less 
than  to  Koman  Catholicism. 

(2)  Surpassingly  great  as  is  his  historical  importance 
as  a  behever,  theologian,  and  churchman,  here  we  can  deal 
with  him  only  as  a  preacher.  Endowed  with  a  great 
intellect,  commanding  wide  learning  of  the  philosophical 
schools  as  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  exercising  an  extra- 
ordinary power  of  moral  and  spiritual  discernment  which 
reached  the  secret  depths  of  the  human  soul,  exceptionally 
skilful  in  the  use  of  reasoning,  a  master  of  language, 
thoroughly  trained  in  the  rhetorical  art — all  these  manifold 
gifts  were  the  obedient  instruments  of  a  passionate,  potent 
personality,  developed  to  maturity  by  an  experience  which, 
through  the  grace  of  God,  had  passed  from  deepest  tragedy 
to  fullest  triumph.  As  an  orator  he  may  have  been 
inferior  to  Chrysostom,  and  the  West  cared  less  for  oratory 
than  the  East ;  but  if  preaching  be  "  truth  through  person- 
ality," ^  he  had  made  his  own  the  truth  of  the  Gospel  even 
more  fully  than  had  the  other,  and  his,  too,  was  an  even 
greater  personality. 

(3)  About  four  hundred  of  his  sermons  have  been 
preserved,  arranged  in  four  classes — de  Scripturis  (on  texts 
of  Scripture),  de  tempore  (festival  sermons),  de  Sanctis  (in 
memory  of  apostles,  martyrs,  and  saints),  and  de  diversis 
(on  various  occasions) ;  some  he  himself  dictated,  others 
were  taken  down  by  his  hearers.  Besides  these  are  a 
series  of  sermons  included  in  his  exegetical  works,  as  on 
the  Psalms,  the  Gospel  of  John,  the  First  Epistle  of  John.^ 
of  the  theology  which  these  sermons  contain,  it  is  impos- 
sible within  the  limits  which  must  be  here  imposed  to 
speak.     Of  his  exegesis,  Schaff  says : 

"  Augustine  deals  more  in  lively,  profound,  and  edifying 
thoughts  on  the  Scriptures  than  in  proper  grammatical  and 
historical  exposition,  for  which  neither  he  nor  his  readers 
had  the  necessary  linguistic  knowledge,  disposition,  or  taste. 

'  See  Introduction,  pp.  8,  9.  '  See  Schaff,  op.  cit.,  p.  1015. 


APOLOGISTS  AND  FATHERS  85 

He  grounded  his  theology  less  upon  exegesis  than  upon  his 
Christian  and  churchly  mind,  saturated  with  Scriptural 
truths."  1 

As  regards  the  Old  Testament,  he  could  read  the  New 
Testament  out  of  it  by  the  use  of  the  allegorical  method,  in 
accordance  with  his  own  saying,  "  Novum  Testamentum  in 
Vetere  latet,  Vetus  in  Novo  patet."  While  his  conception 
of  faith  fell  far  short  of  the  Pauline  idea  of  personal  union 
with  Christ,  and  did  not  go  beyond  a  confident  assent  and 
submission  to  the  teaching  of  the  Scriptures  and  the 
Church,  yet  he  was  nearer  Paul  in  his  experience  of  the 
saving  grace  of  God  than  any  other  of  all  the  fathers.  He 
was  closely  drawn  to  the  Fourth  Gospel,  both  by  his 
philosophical  interest  in  its  Logos  doctrine,  and  by  its 
emphasis  on  love  to  God  and  man,  so  accordant  with  his 
own  spirit. 

(4)  His  rhetorical  art  differs  from  that  of  the  Greeks. 
His  imagery  is  simple  and  striking,  and  he  drives  his 
meaning  home  with  fewer  strokes. 

"  One  recognizes  how  well  he  describes  himself  when  he 
compared  the  orator  with  a  man  eager  for  the  combat,  who 
wins  his  cause  by  fighting  with  a  sword  gilded  and  set  with 
precious  stones,  not  because  it  is  gilded,  but  because  it  is  a 
weapon."  ^ 

He  is  a  master  of  antithesis  and  epigram,  in  which  wit  and 
wisdom  are  conjoined,  and  delights  even  in  rhyme  and 
assonance.     A  few  examples  may  be  given: 

"  Vetus  homo  in  timore  est,  novus  in  amore  "  (The  old  man 
fears,  the  new  loves).  "  Prsecedet  spes,  ut  sequatur  res " 
(Hope  goes  first,  that  fact  may  follow).  "  Non  vincit  nisi 
Veritas,  victoria  veritatis  est  caritas  "  (Only  truth  conquers, 
truth's  victory  is  love).  "  Ubi  amor,  ibi  trinitas "  (Where 
love,  the  Trinity  is).  "  Deo  servire  vera  libertas  est "  (To 
serve  God  is  true  liberty). 

(5)  One  of  his  writings  demands  fuller  notice.  In  his 
De  doctrina  Christiana  he  has  left  "  a  compend  of  exegetical 

^  Nicene  and  Post- Nicene  Christianity,  p.  1015. 
»  HLH,  pp.  41-42. 


86  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

theology  for  iustructiou  in  the  interpretation  of  the 
Scriptures  according  to  the  analogy  of  the  faith,"  ^  in  which 
he  has  developed  a  homiletic  theory.  In  the  first  book 
he  shows  that  a  comprehension  and  exposition  of  the 
Scriptures  should  be  the  preacher's  end  and  task  ;  while 
the  preacher  must  aim  at  edification,  he  must  not  neglect 
the  real  meaning  of  the  writers,  as  such  neglect,  even 
for  a  practical  object,  involves  the  danger  of  arbitrariness, 
and  80  injures  the  faith.  The  second  and  third  books  deal 
with  the  principles  and  rules  of  exegesis,  and  show  that 
Augustine  attached  great  importance  to  exposition  as  the 
work  of  the  preacher.  The  fourth  book  treats  homiletics, 
especially  the  theory  of  pulpit  eloquence,  which  he  dis- 
tinguishes from  the  rhetoric  of  the  schools.  The  Christian 
preacher  must  seek  the  wisdom  which  will  enable  him  to  see 
with  "  the  eyes  of  the  heart  the  heart  of  the  Scriptures  " ; 
and  in  the  Bible  itself  he  can  find  the  examples  of  wisdom 
and  eloquence,  unlike  those  of  any  of  the  rhetorical  schools. 
Having  grounded  his  theory  on  the  Scriptures,  he  next 
discusses  the  conditions  of  lucidity  and  intelligibility,  and, 
following  Cicero,  defines  the  orator's  task  as  threefold, 
docere,  delectere,  and  Jlectere.  He  accepts  the  current  dis- 
tinction of  the  manners  of  speech,  submissum,  temperatum, 
and  grande,  and  quotes  Cicero's  saying  : 

"Is  erit  eloquens,  qui  poterit  parva  submisse,  modica 
temperate,  magna  granditer  dicere."  (He  is  eloquent,  who 
can  speak  the  small  humbly,  the  middling  with  measure,  the 
great  grandly.) 

While  he  recognises  that  the  Christian  pulpit  is  always 
concerned  with  the  great  things,  yet  he  insists  that 
to  avoid  monotony  the  Christian  preacher  must  not  be 
always  talking  in  the  grand  style,  but  must  aim  at  variety. 
His  experience  as  an  orator  appears  in  his  saying : 

"  Facilius  submissum  (genus  dicendi)  solum,  quam  solum 
grande   diutius    tolerari     potest,    commotio    quippe    animi 

1  Schaff,  op.  cit.,  p.  1011.     This  treatise  is  translated  in  vol.  ix.  of  the 
Works,  edited  by  Dods,  Edinburgh. 


APOLOGISTS  AND  FATHERS  87 

quanto  magis  excitanda  est,  ut  nobis  assentiatur  auditor, 
tanto  minus  in  ea  diu  teueri  potest,  cum  fuerit  quantum 
satis  est  excitata."  ^ 

Corresponding  to  the  three  kinds  of  speech  there  are 
three  kinds  of  hearing,  ut  intelligentery  ut  libenter,  ut  obcedi- 
enter  audiatur  (intelligent,  willing,  and  obedient).  He 
himself  was  a  master  of  the  grand  style,  as  he  sought  to 
move  men  deeply  and  strongly  by  the  great  things  of  the 
Gospel.^ 

(G)  One  passage  may  be  quoted  as  illustrating  both 
his  theology  and  his  exegesis.  The  text  is  Mt  20^**,  and 
this  is  how  he  deals  with  the  words,  "  Jesus  passeth  by. ' 

After  mentioning  many  facts  of  the  earthly  life  which 
have  passed  by,  he  continues  his  argument :  "  Now  He  dieth 
no  more,  death  hath  no  more  dominion  over  Him.  And  His 
divinity  abideth  ever,  yea,  the  immortality  of  His  body  now 
shall  never  fail.  But,  nevertheless  all  those  things  which 
were  wrought  by  Him  in  time  have  passed  by :  and  they  are 
written  to  be  read,  and  they  are  preached  to  be  believed. 
In  all  these  things,  then,  Jesus  passeth  by "  .  .  .  "  Now 
upon  these  passing  works  is  our  faith  built  up.  For  we 
believe  on  the  Son  of  God,  not  only  in  that  He  is  the  Word 
of  God,  by  whom  all  things  were  made:  for  if  He  had 
always  continued  in  the  form  of  God,  equal  with  God,  and 
had  not  emptied  Himself  in  taking  the  form  of  a  servant, 
the  blind  men  would  not  even  have  perceived  Him,  that 
they  might  be  able  to  cry  out."  ^ 

V. 

1.  The  preaching  of  the  following  centuries  was 
imitative  rather  than  original.  While  the  influence  of 
Augustine  was  still  dominant,  emphasis  was  increasingly 
laid  on  good  works  and  ritual  observances,  and  the  attach- 
ment to  the  Scriptures  was  less  close.  The  Greek  Father's 
exercised  an  influence  in  tlie  West,  not  only  in  theology, 

*  The  humble  mode  of  speech  by  itself  can  be  borne  longer  than  the 
grand  by  itself,  since  the  more  the  emotion  of  the  mind  is  to  be  excited, 
so  that  the  hearer  may  agree  with  us,  so  much  the  less  can  it  be  so 
kept,  when  it  has  been  excited  enough. 

HLH,  pp.  29-31.  8  WGSI,  pp.  60-64. 


88  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

but  in  a  greater  tendency  to  employ  all  sorts  of  rhetorical 
devices  in  the  pulpit.  The  change  in  the  attitude  to  the 
Scriptures,  while  a  gain  as  regards  the  form  of  the  sermons, 
was  distinctly  a  loss  as  regards  the  religious  and  moral 
worth  of  the  contents.  The  homily  was  replaced  by  the 
topical  (thematic)  discourse,  already  in  favour  with  the 
best  Greek  preachers.  This  tendency  was  confirmed  by 
the  growing  attention  to  the  Christian  year.  The  ecclesi- 
astical festivals  determined  the  subjects  to  be  dealt  with. 
As  the  ritual  became  more  extended  and  important  the 
sermon  {sermo)  became  shorter  (brevis  admonitio)  and  fell 
into  the  background.^ 

2.  Of  preachers  in  the  West  only  a  few  claim  mention. 
Leo  I.  the  Great  (died  461)  illustrates  the  combination  of 
the  influence  of  Augustine  and  the  Greek  Fathers,  and  also 
the  growing  hierarchical  tendency.  Peter  of  RavenTia  (died 
451)  was  so  highly  esteemed  as  a  preacher  that  he  won 
the  surname  Chrysologus ;  but  the  sermons  which  have  been 
preserved  do  not,  for  our  modern  judgment,  justify  that 
epithet.  Maximus  of  Turin  (died  465)  was  noted  for  his 
readiness  as  an  extem])ore  speaker,  and  his  sermons  are 
interesting  for  the  word  pictures  they  offer  of  the  moral 
and  religious  conditions  of  the  period.  Ccesarius  of  Aries 
(died  543)  was  not  only  a  zealous  defender  of  Augustine's 
doctrine  of  prevenient  grace,  but  so  slavish  an  imitator 
of  his  style  that  it  is  not  always  easy  to  distinguish  his 
sermons  from  his  master's,  although  he  falls  far  short  in 
greatness  of  personality.  Gregory  the  Great  (died  604) 
was  distinguished,  not  so  much  for  intellectual  gifts  as  for 
his  conscientiousness  and  solicitude  in  the  discharge  of  his 
duties  as  "  a  shepherd  of  souls,"  and  for  his  interest  in  the 
exposition  of  the  Scriptures.  In  his  method  he  does  not 
follow  Augustine  so  much  as  Origen.  His  sermon  accom- 
panies his  text  step  by  step.  He  is  famous  also  for  his 
treatise  De  cura  pastorali,  in  the  third  book  of  which  he 
gives  a  number  of  useful  practical  hints  to  preachers.^ 

1  See  IILH,  pp.  42-44  ;  DHPI,  pp.  105-114  ;  OPT,  pp.  99-102. 
"See  HLH,  pp.  44-49  ;  DHPI,  pp.  114-129  ;  KHPI,  110-113. 


APOLOGISTS  AND   FATHERS  89 

3.  As  regards  the  form  of  the  sermons  during  this 
period,  the  following  points  deserve  notice.  While  the 
distinction  of  homily  and  sermon  is  not  always  maintained, 
the  two  types  of  preaching  are  the  exposition  of  a  passage 
of  Scripture,  verse  by  verse  and  clause  by  clause,  and  the 
treatment  of  a  subject  (the  thematic  or  topical  sermon). 
The  latter,  however,  had  not  yet  become  fully  synthetic  in 
structure.  An  orderly  arrangement  is,  as  a  rule,  found 
only  where  the  rules  of  the  ancient  rhetoric  are  followed. 
Digressions  and  irrelevances  are  found  even  in  the  greatest 
preachers.  Attention  was  given  to  the  introduction  in 
order  at  once  to  secure  interest.  An  illustration  or  com- 
parison was  often  used ;  but  sometimes  the  preacher  was 
content  with  a  reference  to  the  lesson.  While  in  the  East 
the  conclusion  was  invariably  a  doxology,  often  quite 
arbitrarily  attached,  in  the  West  greater  freedom  was 
claimed.  Augustine  especially  shows  a  great  variety  in 
the  close  of  his  sermons :  sometimes  he  does  end  with  a 
call  to  prayer.  While  this  use  of  the  Amen  at  the  end 
rests  on  apostolic  practice,  it  is  not  allowed  to  become  a 
mere  formality.  When  it  would  be  inappropriate,  neither 
Augustine  nor  Leo  end  with  the  Amen.  The  hearers  are 
generally  addressed  as  "  brethren,"  or  "  my  brethren,"  or 
even  as  "  beloved."  ^ 

1  See  HLH,  pp.  49-51. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

PRIEST,  MONK,  AND  FRIAR:    SCHOLASTIC 
AND  MYSTIC. 

I. 

The  outstanding  feature  of  the  second  period  in  the 
history  of  preaching  in  the  Christian  Church  is  that  in  it 
the  Gospel  was  carried  to  the  new  nations  which  rose  on 
the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  and  that  the  common  people 
began  to  hear  the  Word  of  God  in  their  own  mother  tongue. 
Irenseus  had  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Lyons  preached  to 
the  Celts  in  their  own  speech ;  Augustine  assumed,  how- 
ever, that  the  heathen  would  themselves  come,  without 
messengers  being  sent  to  them,  to  listen  to  Latin  preaching ; 
but  the  Celtic  and  Teutonic  tribes  would  not  have  been  won 
had  not  the  more  excellent  way  of  vernacular  evangelisation 
been  attempted.^ 

1.  It  was  not  the  Western  or  Roman,  but  the  Eastern 
or  Greek  Church  which  first  sent  missionaries  to  Scotland. 
(1)  St.  Rule  (Regulus),  an  Eastern  monk,  according  to  the 
legend,  visited  St.  Andrews  in  369  and  converted  the 
Picts  in  the  neighbourhood.  In  400,  St.  Ninian,  who  was 
of  English  parentage,  after  a  visit  to  Rome  and  instruction 
from  St.  Martin  of  Tours,  came  to  Galloway  and  built  a 
church  at  Whithorn,  from  which  as  a  centre  the  Southern 
Picts  were  evangelised.  About  thirty  years  later  St.  Pal- 
ladius  came  from  Rome  in  order  to  draw  tighter  the  bonds 
between  Scotland  and  the  Western  Church.  Scottish 
Christianity  became  missionary  in  St.  Patrick,  who,  carried 
captive  to  Ireland,  preached  the  Gospel  there.     The  debt 

1  HLH,  pp.  52-53. 
90 


PRIEST,   MONK,   AND  FRIAR  91 

of  Ireland  to  Scotland  was  repaid  by  St.  Columba,  who 
gathered  around  him  in  the  Island  of  Ion  a  a  religious  com- 
munity which  did  more  for  the  spread  of  the  Gospel 
throughout  Scotland  and  also  the  north  of  England  than 
had  hitherto  been  done.  Columba  died  in  597.  His 
followers,  the  Culdees,  possessed  many  peculiarities,  for  the 
preservation  of  which  they  had  to  contend  against  Eoman- 
ising  influences ;  but  this  interesting  story  lies  beyond  the 
scope  of  this  volume.^ 

(2)  We  have  no  remains,  however,  of  the  preaching  in 
the  mother  tongue,  but  Dr.  Ker  records  that  in  the  Advo- 
cates' Library  of  Edinburgh  there  is  "  an  old  volume  which 
contains  the  Instrudiones  Sancti  Columbani,  not  of  Columba 
but  of  a  later  disciple  of  his  school,  who  visited  France, 
Switzerland,  and  the  north  of  Italy,  and  preached  both  in 
Latin  and  the  vernacular.  The  Instrudiones  are  generally 
brief,  giving  probably  little  more  than  the  line  pursued  .  .  ." 

"  There  is  not  much  of  what  we  should  call  profound 
or  fresh  thinking,  but  it  is  very  earnest,  very  practical,  and 
close  up  to  the  condition  of  the  hearers ;  and  it  must  have 
sounded  fresh  enough  to  the  ears  of  those  wild  Scots  and 
Picts,  who,  not  long  before,  had  been  practising  barbarities 
upon  poor  provincials  whose  wailing  cries  have  come  down 
to  us."« 

2.  The  doubt  regarding  the  genuineness  of  the  sermons 
ascribed  to  Columba,  which  were  addressed  to  monks,  and 
so  do  not  represent  his  missionary  preaching,  extends  to  a 
discourse  ascribed  to  Gall.  (1)  To  Boniface,  whose  Anglo- 
Saxon  name  was  Winfrid  (born  about  680,  martyred  755), 
the  preacher  of  the  Gospel  in  Germany,  are  ascribed  fifteen 
sermons,  the  authenticity  of  which  Cruel  has  attempted  to 
prove ;  but  his  arguments  have  been  met  by  Hahn.  Not 
quite  so  doubtful  is  the  judgment  regarding  the  sermons  of 
Eligius  (born  about  588,  died  about  658),  who  was  Bishop 

^  See  Walker's  Scottish  Church  History,  pp.  3-10  ;  Eobinson'e  2%c  C<m- 
version  of  Europe,  pp.  68-84  ;  Macewan's  A  History  of  the  Church  in 
Scotland,  i.  pp.  1-115. 

^  KHP,  p.  63. 


/ 


92  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

of  Noyon,  and  as  a  preacher  laboured  for  the  sound  con- 
version of  the  baptized  Franks,  and  even  reached  Flanders 
and  Friesland.  The  sermons  are  addressed  to  a  constituted 
church,  and  the  reference  in  them  to  vernacular  preaching  ^ 
shows  that  this  was  not  the  rule,  but  the  exception.^  "  From 
the  fragments  of  his  sermons  which  have  been  preserved," 
says  Eobinson — 

"  we  see  that  he  had  frequent  occasion  to  warn  his  hearers 
against  the  observance  of  heathen  customs.  Thus  he  writes : 
'  He  is  a  good  Christian  who  putteth  not  his  trust  in  amu- 
lets or  inventions  of  the  devil,  but  placeth  all  his  life  in 
Christ  alone.  .  .  .  But,  above  all  things,  I  adjure  you  not 
to  observe  the  sacrilegious  customs  of  pagans,  nor  to  consult 
in  any  trial  or  difficulty  soothsayers,  fortune-tellers,  or 
diviners,  for  he  who  doeth  this  evil  thing  forthwith  loseth 
the  grace  of  baptism.  Let  there  be  amongst  you  no  resorting 
to  auguries,  or  sneezings,  or  observance  of  the  flight  or 
singing  of  birds,  but  rather  when  you  set  out  on  a  journey 
or  undertake  any  work,  sit^n  yourselves  in  the  name  of 
Christ,  repeat  the  Creed  and  the  Lord's  Prayer  with  faith 
and  devotion,  and  no  enemy  shall  be  able  to  hurt  you.  No 
Christian  will  take  note  of  the  day  on  which  he  leaves  home 
or  returns,  for  all  days  are  made  by  God.  No  Christian 
will  wait  for  a  particular  day  or  moon  before  commencing 
/  any  undertaking,  nor  on  the  first  of  January  will  join  in 
foolish  or  unseemly  junketings  or  frivolity  or  nocturnal 
revellings.  .  .  .  Let  no  one  regard  heaven  or  earth  or  stars 
or  any  creature  at  all  as  deserving  of  worship.  God  alone 
is  to  be  adored,  for  He  alone  created  and  ordained  all 
things.'^  In  other  sermons  he  portrays  graphically  the 
scene  which  he  anticipates  will  be  enacted  at  the  Day  of 
Judgment,  when  those  who  have  despised  and  rejected 
Christ  will  be  condemned  to  perdition."  ^ 

(2)  The  Anglo-Saxons  were  evangelised  by  an  Augustine 

*  "  Rustico  sermone  vos  alloquimur,"  Mgn.  87.  612. 

2  See  HLH,  pp.  54-55. 

3  After  the  quotation  this  note  is  added— "See  Vita  EUqii,  ii.  16; 
Migne,  P.Z.  Ixxxvii.  col.  528  f.  The  authorship  of  this  sermon  is  not 
certain,  and  has  been  attributed  by  some  to  Casarius  of  Aries  (ph.  542)." 

*  The  Conve.r&ion  of  Eurojte,  by  C.  H.  Robinson,  pp.  326-327.  This  book 
may  with  advantage  be  consulted  lor  fuller  details  regarding  the  preaching 
of  the  Christian  niissionaries  in  Europe, 


PRIEST,   MONK,    AND   FRIAR  93 

(not  the  Church  father)  whom  Gregory  the  Great  was  led, 
in  596,  to  send  by  the  incident  so  familiar  that  it  need 
not  be  repeated.  Augustine's  follower,  Wilfrith,  came  into 
conflict  with  the  Culdees  of  lona  at  Whitby.^  Montal- 
ambert,  in  his  Monks  of  the  West,  p.  608,  makes  the 
following  statement :  ^ 

"  It  is  then  to  the  monks,  scattered  as  missionaries  and 
preachers  over  the  country,  or  united  in  the  numerous  com 
munities  of  episcopal  cities  and  other  great  monastic  centres, 
that  must  in  justice  be  attributed  the  initiation  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxons  into  the  truths  of  religion.  .  .  .  They  were  expressly 
commanded  to  teach  and  explain  to  their  flocks  in  the 
vernacular  tongue,  the  Decalogue,  the  Lord's  Prayer,  the 
Apostles'  Creed,  and  the  sacred  words  which  were  used  in 
the  celebration  of  the  mass  and  the  administration  of  bap- 
tism; to  expound  to  them  every  Sunday,  in  English,  the 
Epistle  and  Gospel  of  the  day,  and  to  preach,  or  instead  of 
preaching,  to  read  them  something  useful  to  "their  souls.  .  .  . 
From  this  spring  these  homilies  in  Anglo-Saxon  which  are 
so  often  to  be  met  with  among  the  manuscripts  in  our 
libraries,  and  which  are  by  several  centuries  of  an  earlier 
date  than  the  earliest  religious  documents  of  any  other 
modern  language." 

(3)  A  quotation  from  Eobinson  brings  before  us  the 
occasion,  the  content,  and  the  effect  of  one  of  these  mis- 
sionary addresses :  ^ 

"  In  or  about  775  an  English  missionary,  Lebuin  .  .  . 
determined  to  appeal  in  person  to  the  Saxons  at  their  annual 
gathering  at  Marklum  (Markelo)  in  Saxony,  near  the  E. 
Weser.  Arrayed  in  priestly  garments,  with  an  uplifted 
cross  in  one  hand  and  a  copy  of  the  Gospels  in  the  other 
hand,  he  presented  himself  to  the  Saxons  as  they  were  about 
to  offer  sacrifices  to  their  national  gods,  who,  amazed  at  his 
courageous  bearing,  gave  him  at  first  an  attentive  hearing. 
The  following  are  the  words  of  his  address  as  recorded  by 
his  biographer :  '  Hearken  unto  me,  and  not  so  much  to  me 
as  to  Him  who  speaks  to  you  through  me.  I  declare  unto 
you  the  commands  of  Him  whom  all  things  serve  and  obey. 

1  KHP,  pp.  111-112. 

-  Quoted  in  DHPI,  p.  136.     See  note  3  for  further  details. 

^  The  Conversion  of  Europe,  pp.  3S3-386. 


94  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Hearken,  attend,  and  know  that  God  is  the  Greater  of  heaven 
and  earth,  the  sea,  and  all  things  that  are  therein.     He  is 
the  one,  only  and  true  God.     He  made  us,  and  not  we  our- 
selves, nor   is   there  any  other  beside  Him,     The  images 
which  ye  think   to   be  gods,   and  which,   beguiled   by  the 
devil,  ye  worship,  are  but  gold,  or  silver,  or  brass,  or  stone, 
or  wood.  .  .  .  God,  the  only  good  and  righteous  Being,  whose 
mercy  and  truth  remain  for  ever,  moved  with  pity  that  ye 
should  be  thus  seduced  by  the  errors  of  demons,  has  charged 
me  as  His  ambassador  to  beseech  you  to  lay  aside  your  old 
errors,  and  to  turn  with  sincere  and  true  faith  to  Him  by 
whose  goodness  ye  were  created.     In  Him  you  and  all  of  us 
live  and  move  and  have  our  being.     If  ye  will  truly  acknow- 
ledge Him  and  repent  and  be  baptized,  in  the  name  of  the 
Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  will  obediently 
keep  His  commandments,  then  will  He  preserve  you  from 
all  evil,  and  will  grant  unto  you  the  blessings  of  peace  here 
and  in  the  life  to  come  the  enjoyment  of  all  good  things. 
But  if  ye  despise  and  reject  His  most  salutary  counsels,  and 
refuse  to  correct  the  errors  of  your  wicked  heart,  know  that 
ye  will  suffer  terrible  punishment  for  scorning  His  merciful 
warnings.     Behold  I  declare  unto  you  the  sentence  which 
has  gone  forth  from  His  mouth,  and  which  cannot  change ; 
if  ye  do  not  obey  His  commands,  then  will  sudden  destruc- 
tion come  upon  you.     For  the  King  of  all  the  heavens  hath 
appointed  a  brave,  prudent,  and  most  vigorous  prince  who  is 
not  afar  off,  but  close  at  hand.     He,  like  a  most  swift  torrent, 
will  burst  upon  you  and  subdue  the  ferocity  of  your  hearts, 
and  crush   your  stiff-necked  obstinacy.     He   shall  invade 
your  land  with  a  mighty  host,  and  ravage  the  whole  with 
fire  and  sword,  desolation  and  destruction.     As  the  avenger 
{vindex)  of  the  wrath  of  that  God  whom  ye  ever  provoke, 
he  shall  slay  some  of  you  with  the  sword,  some  he  shall 
cause  to  waste  away  in  poverty  and  want,  some  he  shall 
destroy  with  the  misery  of  a  perpetual  captivity,  and  your 
wives  and  children  he  will  scatter  far  and  wide  as  slaves,  and 
the  residue  of  you  he  will  reduce  to  a  most  ignominious  sub- 
jection, that  in  you  may  be  fulfilled  what  has  long  since 
been   predicted,  "  they   were   made    few    in    number,  and 
were  tormented  with  the  tribulation  and  anguish  of  the 
wicked." ' ^    "It  would  be  hard,"  continues  Kobinson,  " to 

1  Robinson  adds  this  note — "  VUa  Lehuini ;  Migne,  P.L.  cxxxii.  col. 
888  ff.     The  life  was  written  by  Hucbald  of  St.  Amand  (918-976)." 


PRIEST,   MONK,   AND   FRIAR  95 

conceive  a  bolder  address  or,  we  must  add,  one  less  likely 
to  appeal  to  the  untamed  warriors  to  which  it  was  addressed. 
.  .  .  We  are  not  surprised  to  read  that  the  closing  sentences 
of  this  missionary  address  were  received  by  the  audience 
with  unrestrained  anger.  ...  It  would  have  fared  badly 
with  the  missionary  had  it  not  been  for  the  kindly  interven- 
tion of  an  aged  chief  named  Bruto.  .  .  .  His  intervention 
proved  effective,  and  the  intrepid  missionary  was  permitted 
to  depart  without  further  molestation." 

3.  Most  of  the  missionaries  were  monks,  although 
Eligius  of  Noyon,  already  mentioned,  was  an  exception, 
(l)  Within  the  monasteries  themselves  there  was  a  good 
deal  of  preaching  done,  instruction  and  exhortation  of  the 
monks  themselves  by  a  bishop  on  a  visit,  a  travelling 
monk,  the  abbot  himself,  or  one  of  the  brothers  gifted  and 
chosen  for  the  task.  To  the  nuns,  the  bishop  of  the 
diocese,  or  a  monk  of  the  related  order,  was  the  preacher. 
As  these  sermons  were  often  given  while  the  hearers  were 
at  their  common  meal,  they  were  sometimes  called  collations} 

(2)  It  was  in  this  sphere  that  the  Venerable  Bede 
(673-735)  did  his  work  as  a  preacher;  for  while  he  wrote 
poetry  in  Anglo-Saxon,  his  sermons  are  all  in  Latin. 
Their  form  is  the  homily,  a  commentary  on  some  portion 
of  Scripture,  sometimes  marred  by  the  allegorising  method 
of  the  time.  To  him  Palmer  "  ascribes  the  introduction  of 
the  novelty  of  arranging  his  sermons  according  to  the 
seasons  of  the  ecclesiastical  year."  ^  One  of  the  sermons, 
entitled  the  Meeting  of  Mercy  and  Justice,  illustrates  this 
allegorical  method.^     Its  first  paragraph  runs  as  follows : 

"There  was  a  certain  father  of  a  family,  a  powerful 
king,  who  had  four  daughters,  of  whom  one  was  called 
Mercy,  the  second  Truth,  the  third  Justice,  the  fourth 
Peace ;  of  whom  it  is  said  '  Mercy  and  Truth  are  met 
together;  Justice  and  Peace  have  kissed  each  other.'     He 

*  The  use  of  Latin  in  the  monasteries  was  a  sign  of  the  cosmopolitanism 
of  the  church  in  that  age. 

^KHP,  p.  114,  note. 

^  CME,  i.  pp.  345-348.  The  sermons  have  not  been  translated.  The 
best  edition  of  his  works  is  Dr.  Giles'  (London,  1843-1844.     12  vols.). 


96  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

had  also  a  certain  most  wise  son,  to  whom  no  one  could 
be  compared  in  wisdom.  He  had  also  a  certain  servant, 
whom  he  had  exalted  and  enriched  with  great  honour; 
for  he  had  made  him  after  his  own  likeness  and  similitude, 
and  that  without  any  preceding  merit  on  the  servant's 
part.  But  the  Lord,  as  is  the  custom  with  such  wise 
masters,  wished  prudently  to  explore,  and  to  become 
acquainted  with  the  character  and  the  faith  of  his  servant, 
whether  he  were  trustworthy  towards  himself  or  not ;  so  he 
gave  him  an  easy  commandment,  and  said,  '  If  you  do  what 
I  tell  you  I  will  exalt  you  to  further  honours ;  if  not,  you 
shall  perish  miserably.'"  The  servant  disobeys,  and  is 
handed  over  to  tormentors.  Mercy  takes  pity  on  him,  and 
pleads  for  him ;  but  Truth  and  Justice  withstand  her ;  and 
Peace  flees  far  off.  The  father  consults  his  wise  son,  who 
with  Mercy  undertakes  to  solve  this  problem,  and  he  does. 
Man  is  saved,  and  the  sisters  are  reconciled.  "  Thus,  there- 
fore, by  the  Mediator  of  men  and  angels,  man  was  purified 
and  reconciled,  and  the  hundredth  sheep  was  brought  back 
to  the  fold  of  God.  To  which  fold  Jesus  Christ  brings  us, 
to  whom  is  honour  and  power  everlasting.     Amen." 

4.  In  the  previous  period  the  duty  of  preaching  was 
for  the  most  part  discharged  by  the  bishop ;  but  as  his 
diocese  increased  in  size,  it  became  impossible  for  him 
personally  to  exercise  the  necessary  ministry ;  parishes 
were  formed  and  parochial  clergy  were  appointed.  This 
development  began  in  France  in  the  sixth  century,  was 
most  marked  in  the  ninth,  and  appears  as  complete  in  the 
tenth  century.  Thus  to  the  missionary  and  cloistral 
preaching  was  added  the  parochial.  (1)  This  was  generally 
on  a  much  lower  level,  as  the  clergy  were  often  very 
ignorant,  and  sometimes  even  immoral.  Efforts  at 
improvement  were,  however,  made ;  Chrodegang,  Archbishop 
of  Metz,  in  762  issued  his  Regula  Canonicorum ;  and  in 
the  44th  canon  required  preaching  in  all  the  churches  in 
his  diocese,  twice  a  month  at  least,  and,  if  possible,  on  every 
Lord's  Day  and  fast  day,  and  enjoined  that  it  should  be  made 
intelligible  to  the  people.^ 

(2)  But  the  great  reformer  of  the  Church  in  France 

1  DHPI,  pp.  134-135. 


PRIEST,  MONK,  AND  FRIAR  97 

and  in  Germany  was  Charlemagne.  Gregory  the  Great 
had  required  that  every  priest  should  be  a  preacher,  and 
the  Council  of  Toledo  in  633  had  for  this  end  required 
a  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures.  In  his  Capitularia, 
Charlemagne  showed  his  concern  for  the  character  and 
efficiency  of  the  clergy,  and  especially  their  capacity  as 
preachers.  In  his  general  admonition  of  23rd  March  789 
he  describes  himself  as 

" '  a  devoted  defender  and  humble  helper  of  the  holy  church, 
.  .  .  reminds  the  shepherds  of  the  churches  of  Christ  and 
the  leaders  of  His  flock  with  moving  words  of  their  duty, 
with  care  and  unceasing  exhortation  to  lead  the  people  of 
God  to  the  pasture  of  eternal  life ;  he  there  also  indicates 
the  essential  content  of  preaching  briefly  and  formally  in 
dependence  on  the  symbol.  With  emphasis  he  insists  at 
the  same  time  in  accordance  with  his  interest  in  the 
Christian  moral  education  of  the  people,  that  the  preachers 
should  hold  before  the  vicious  the  eternal  torments,  and 
encourage  to  virtue  by  pointing  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
The  impression  of  this  sermon-like  imperial  admonition  is 
heightened  at  the  close  by  a  solemn  prayer,  '  Peace  to  the 
preachers,  grace  to  the  obedient,  and  glory  to  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.     Amen.' "  ^ 

The  priests  were  expected  to  be  able  to  read  and  explain 
the  Gospel,  and  to  understand  the  homilies  of  the  Fathers, 
of  which  they  were  even  encouraged  to  make  liberal  use. 

(3)  Paul  Wamefrid,  called  Paulus  Diaconus,  was 
entrusted  with  the  task  of  bringing  together  "  the  best 
flowers  out  of  the  beautiful  meadows  of  the  Fathers, 
that  those  who  were  unable  to  preach  might  read  them." 
This  collection  bore  the  name  of  the  Homiliarium,  and  the 
arrangement  followed  the  Chui-ch  festivals  and  seasons. 
The  passage  apportioned  for  each  day  on  which  the  homily 
was  based  was  called  the  pericope;  and  from  this  in 
England  as  on  the  Continent  the  text  is  often  to  the 
present  day  selected.  As  each  homily  began  with  the 
words  Post  ilia  verba  textus,  "  after  these  words  of  the  text," 
sermons  came  to  be  called  Postils;  and  postillare  was 
1  HLH,  p.  56. 


98  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

often  used  instead  of  prmdicare  in  mediaeval  Latin.  The 
unintended  effect  of  the  provision  of  this  crutch  was  that 
the  clergy  ceased  to  use  their  own  limbs,  by  being  content  to 
/'read  the  sermons  instead  of  making  any  attempt  to  preach 
themselves.  They  became  more  lazy,  ignorant,  and  in- 
capable. Further,  as  the  homilies  were  in  Latin,  the  common 
people  did  not  understand  them.  The  third  Council  of 
Tours  in  813  a.d.  tried  to  remedy  this  evil  by  requiring 
that  the  homily  should  be  translated  into  the  vernacular.^ 

(4)  Two  other  contributory  causes  of  the  decline  of 
preaching  may  be  mentioned.  Even  the  leaders  of  the 
Church  were  so  much  in  the  grip  of  traditionalism,  that 
they  could  not  hold  to  the  Holy  Scriptures  the  relation  of 
intelligent  apprehension  and  spiritual  appreciation  which  is 
essential  to  truly  Christian  preaching.  Although  Alcuin 
(died  804)  revised  the  Vulgate,  and  Eahanus  Maurus 
(776-856)  wrote  commentaries,  this  defect  was  not 
corrected.  Superstitions  also  became  more  rife  in  the 
adoration  of  saints  and  relics,  and  ritualism  displaced 
preaching.  Even  the  reforms  of  Charlemagne  strengthened 
the  hold  of  the  liturgy,  and  weakened  preaching  by  the 
dependence  on  the  symbol  and  the  Fathers  enforced.  Such 
being  the  general  conditions,  it  is  not  necessary  to  deal  in 
detail  with  any  of  the  preachers.^ 

5.  But  the  unoriginal  and  parasitic  character  of  the 
preaching  till  the  twelfth  century  may  be  briefly  illustrated. 
Eabanus  Maurus  in  his  de  dericorum  institutione  reproduces 
Augustine's  de  doctriTia  ehi'istiana.  While  Hayirw  (died 
853),  his  friend,  aims  at  a  clear  and  thorough  interpreta- 
tion of  the  text,  and  thus  is  a  fruitful  preacher ;  yet  he 
is  always  guided  by  patristic  authority,  especially  that  of 
Augustine  and  Bede.  To  the  Homiliarium,  already  men- 
tioned, must  be  added  the  speculuvi  ecclesice  of  Honorius 
Scholasticus  (a  German  of  the  early  part  of  the  twelfth 
century),  the  dejlorationes  ^^a^r^^m  of  Abbot  Werner  of 
EUerbach  (died  1126),  the  second  being,  however,  dependent 
in  large  measure  on  the  first,  and  the  collection  made  by 
1  KHP,  pp.  117-119.  ^  HLH,  pp.  58-59. 


PRIEST,   MONK,   AND  FRIAR  99 

Florus  of  Lyons.  Honorius  has  this  significance  for  the 
form  of  preaching,  that  he  makes  more  prominent  the 
exordium  (introduction)  and  the  thema  (subject) ;  and  that 
he  provides  the  allegorical  method  with  new  material  in 
the  ancient  mythology.  A  book,  dealing  with  anima^Tf^ 
called  the  Fhysiologus,  which  in  the  early  centuries  appeared 
in  Alexandria,  offered  a  new  source  of  illu8tration,V  which 
became  very  popular.  Fables  and  legends  attr9;6ted  the 
multitude  and  thus  were  freely  used ;  the  allegorical  treat- 
ment tended  to  be  stereotyped.  Not  till  the  rise  of 
Scholasticism  did  the  sermon  lose  its  old  form  as  a  homily, 
and  assume  a  more  logical  structure  with  distinct  and 
expressed  divisions.^ 

II.  "^ 

1.  "  He  who  realizes  the  living  place  which  preaching, 
in  its  most  vital  forms,  has  ever  taken  in  the  spiritual  life 
of  the  Church  will  need  no  further  assurance  of  its  great 
importance.  He  will  not  fail  to  note  that  the  preacher's 
message  and  the  Church's  spiritual  condition  have  risen  or 
fallen  together.  When  life  has  gone  out  of  the  preacher  it 
is  not  long  before  it  has  gone  out  of  the  Church  also.  On 
the  other  hand,  when  there  has  been  a  revived  message  of 
life  on  the  preacher's  lips  there  comes  as  a  consequence  a 
revived  condition  in  the  Church  itself.  The  connection 
between  these  two  things  has  been  close,  uniform,  and 
constant."  * 

This  general  statement  has  a  striking  illustration  in  the 
period  of  history  we  have  now  reached : 

"  The  lowest  period  in  the  life  of  Christianity,  and  there- 
fore in  preaching,  was  from  800  to  1200  a.d.  Thereafter 
it  began  to  rise,  though  with  many  fluctuations,  and  the 
revival  took  different  forms  in  preparation  for  the  Eefor- 
mation."* 

'  A  Welsh  preacher  of  a  former  generation  had  a  famous  sermon  on  the 
Ark,  in  which  many  of  the  aninitds  were  "spiritualised"  ;  a  like  method 
was  applied  by  a  Scotch  preacher  to  the  plagues  of  Egypt. 

^  See  HLH,  pp.  58-63. 

*  Brown's  Puritan  Preachiny  in  England,  p.  7.  *  KHP,  p.  124. 


100  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

The  conditions  for  this  advance  can  be  traced  to  the 
eleventh  century.  The  new  nations  of  Europe  became 
more  conscious  of  their  own  worth,  less  dependent  on  the 
past,  and  more  confident  for  the  future. 

The  foundations  of  the  intellectual  structure  in  philo- 
sophy and  theology,  which  we  call  Scholasticism,  were  laid 
in  the  labours  of  Lanfranc  (died  1089)  and  Anselm 
(1033-1109).  The  Church  was  being  cleansed,  and  so 
strengthened  by  the  reforming  work  of  Hildebrand  (1020- 
1085).  A  great  stimulus  was  given  to  thought  and  life 
by  the  Crusades;  for  not  only  was  the  religious  zeal  of 
Christendom  aroused,  but  contact  with  the  Saracens,  who 
were  distinguished  alike  in  science  and  philosophy,  resulted 
in  a  revival  of  learning :  for  instance,  Aristotle  came  to  be 
better  known,  and  so  to  exercise  a  dominant  influence  in 
scholasticism.^  In  1095  the  Council  of  Piacenza  heard 
an  appeal  from  the  emperor  of  the  East,  Alexius  Comnenus, 
for  support  against  the  Saracens.  Although  the  Pope, 
Urban  ii.,  and  the  Council  lent  a  willing  ear  to  the  request, 
yet  it  was  only  at  the  later  Council  at  Clermont  that  the 
Pope's  eloquence  awakened  the  necessary  enthusiasm,  which 
then  was  diffused  by  the  bishops  on  their  homeward 
journeys.  But,  while  the  princes  were  making  arrange- 
ments, a  multitude  of  40,000  men  started  under  the 
leadership  of  Peter  the  Hermit.  According  to  the  legend, 
he  saw  Christ  Himself  in  a  dream,  was  entrusted  with  a 
command  to  the  Pope  that  all  Christendom  should  be 
summoned  to  wrest  the  Holy  Sepulchre  from  the  hands  of 
the  infidels,  and  was  then  commissioned  by  the  Pope  to 
preach  throughout  France  and  Italy  to  arouse  the  common 
people.  Into  the  history  of  the  Crusades  it  is  not  necessary 
to  enter,  but  attention  may  be  called  to  the  part  played 
in  them  by  popular  preaching,  such  as  that  of  Peter.^ 

2.  The  duty  of  preaching  the  Second  Crusade  in  1146 
in  France,  Italy,  and  Germany  fell  to  the  greatest  preacher 
of  this  century,  Bernard  of  Clairvaux  (died  1153).     (1)  We 

1  DHPI,  pp.  182-184  ;  KHP,  pp.  121-123. 
*  Kurtz's  Church  History,  ii.  pp.  14-20. 


PRIEST,    MONK,   AND   FRIAR  101 

are  not  concerned  with  him  as  a  powerful  ecclesiastic  or 
famous  theologian,  still  less  as  a  heresy  hunter,  but  as  a 
preacher.  He  bears  a  striking  resemblance  to  Augustine. 
Not  his  equal  as  scholar  or  thinker,  he  is  often  nearer 
the  very  heart  of  the  Gospel.  While  influenced  by  Neo- 
Platonism,  which  came  to  him  through  the  Pseudo-Dionysius, 
his  piety  remained  distinctly  and  intensely  Christian ;  his 
mysticism  was  saved  from  the  common  peril  by  his  personal 
passionate  devotion  to  Jesus  in  His  earthly  humiliation. 

(2)  In  his  sermons  on  the  Song  of  Songs  he  seeks  to 
lead  the  monks  of  his  own  order  into  the  intimate  relation 
of  the  individual  soul  to  Christ  as  the  Bridegroom ;  this 
analogy  has  its  serious  dangers,  which  Bernard  did  not 
altogether  escape  ;  for  heavenly  devotion  cannot  use  the 
language  of  earthly  passion  with  entire  safety.  He  has 
seven  sermons  on  the  first  verse :  "  Let  him  kiss  me  with 
the  kisses  of  his  mouth."  In  the  eighty- sixth  sermon  of 
the  series,  on  which  he  was  engaged  for  eighteen  years,  he 
had  reached  only  the  first  verse  of  the  third  chapter.  He 
has  125  sermons  on  various  subjects,  and  a  great  number 
on  the  holy  seasons;  most  commonly  read  are  his  seven 
Advent  sermons,  in  which,  while  expressing  his  loving  joy 
in  the  Incarnation  of  the  Son  of  God,  he  often  betrays  a 
tendency  to  Mariolatry,  which  goes  far  beyond  anything  to 
be  found  in  Augustine,  as  the  following  sentences  show : 

"  Let  us  also  endeavour  to  ascend  by  her  to  him,  who 
descended  to  us  by  her ;  to  come  by  her  into  the  grace  of 
him,  who  by  her  came  into  our  misery.  By  thee  we  have 
approach  to  the  Son,  0  blessed  creator  of  grace,  generator 
of  life,  mother  of  salvation,  so  that  he  who  is  given  to  us  by 
thee,  by  thee  may  receive  us."  ^ 

Yet  from  the  same  lips  falls  the  assurance  that  it  is  faith 
which  justifies  before  God  ; 

"  It  is  altogether  because  of  the  gentleness,  which  is 
preached  in  thee,  that  we  run  after  thee,  Lord  Jesus,  hear- 
ing that  thou  dost  not  spurn  the  poor,  thou  dost  not  treat 
harshly  the  sinner.     Thou  didst  not  treat  harshly  the  thief 

»  See  II.  Mill.  183.  43,  quoted  io  HLH,  p.  65. 


102  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

confessing,  not  the  sinful  woman  weeping,  not  the  woman 
of  Canaan  beseeching,  not  the  woman  taken  in  adultery, 
not  the  man  sitting  at  the  receiipt  of  custom,  not  the  tax- 
gatherer  beseeching,  not  the  disciple  denying,  not  the 
persecutor  of  the  disciples,  not  even  those  who  crucified 
thee.  .  .  .  Thou  art  as  able  to  justify,  as  abounding  to 
forgive.  Wherefore  whosoever,  contrite  for  his  sins,  hungers 
and  thirsts  for  righteousness,  believes  in  thee,  who  dost 
justify  the  ungodly,  he  also  justified  hy  faith  alone  will  have 
pea^e  with  God."  ^ 

It  is  his  apprehension  of  the  love  of  Jesus  in  his  earthly 
life,  and  his  surrender  of  his  heart  and  life  to  that  love, 
which  make  him  a  link  in  the  evangelical  succession  of 
Paul,  Augustine,  Luther,  Wesley.  His  mysticism  repre- 
sented the  living  piety  of  the  Middle  Ages  in  contrast  with 
ecclesiastical  ritualism  and  scholastic  intellectualism. 

(3)  As  regards  the  form  of  his  sermons,  they  are  not 
merely  a  series  of  comments  on  the  text  of  Scripture,  at 
least  not  his  sermons  on  festivals,  but  aim  at  a  certain 
organic  unity.  He  even  sometimes,  at  the  beginning, 
indicates  the  main  thoughts  and  the  divisions  of  the  sermon, 
even  if  in  the  sermon  itself  the  structure  is  not  made 
evident.  Hering^  and  Dargan^  give  the  same  illustration 
from  the  first  Advent  sermon :  "  Diligently  weigh  the 
reasons  for  the  coming  and  seeking,  namely,  who  it  is  that 
comes,  whence,  whither,  for  what  purpose,  when  and  how." 
The  last  head  he  has  to  postpone  for  another  sermon ;  the 
term  sermo  or  speech,  and  not  homily  or  talk,  is  therefore 
applicable.  The  language  is  that  of  the  orator,  and  worthily 
clothes  elevated  thought  and  inspired  feeling.  Possibly  in 
him  we  can  detect  already  the  distinctive  merit  of  the 
French  genius. 

(4)  Here  is  an  example  of  how  he  preached  the  Second 
Crusade : 

"If  it  were  announced  to  you  that  the  enemy  had 
invaded  your  cities,  your  castles,  your  lands ;  had  ravished 

^  Sermons  on  Canticles  22*,  quoted  in  Latin  in  HLH,  p.  64. 
a  HLH,  66.  note  2.  »  DHPI,  p.  212. 


PRIEST,    MONK,   AND   FRIAR  103 

your  wives  and  your  daughters,  and  profaned  your  temples, 
which  among  you  would  not  fly  to  arms  ?  Well,  then  all 
these  calamities,  and  calamities  still  greater,  have  fallen 
upon  your  brethren,  upon  the  family  of  Jesus  Christ,  which 
is  yours.  Why  do  you  hesitate  to  repair  so  many  evils — to 
revenge  so  many  outrages  ?  Will  you  allow  the  infidels  to 
contemplate  in  peace  the  ravages  they  have  committed  on 
Christian  people  ?  Eemember  that  their  triumph  will  be  a 
subject  for  grief  to  all  ages,  and  an  eternal  opprobrium  upon 
the  generation  that  has  endured  it.  Yes,  the  living  God 
has  charged  me  to  announce  to  you  that  he  will  punish 
them  who  shall  not  have  defended  him  against  his  enemies. 
Fly  then  to  arms ;  let  a  holy  rage  animate  you  in  the  fight, 
and  let  the  Christian  world  resound  with  these  words  of 
the  prophet,  'Cursed  be  he  who  does  not  stain  his  sword 
with  blood.'  If  the  Lord  calls  you  to  the  defence  of  his 
heritage,  think  not  that  his  hand  has  lost  its  power.  Could 
he  not  send  twelve  legions  of  angels,  or  breathe  one  word, 
and  all  his  enemies  would  crumble  away  in  dust  ?  But  God 
has  considered  the  sons  of  men,  to  open  for  them  the  road 
to  his  mercy.  His  goodness  has  caused  to  dawn  for  you  a 
day  of  safety,  by  calling  on  you  to  avenge  his  glory  and  his 
name.  Christian  warriors,  he  who  gave  his  life  for  you, 
to-day  demands  yours  in  return.  These  are  combats  worthy 
of  you,  combats  in  which  it  is  glorious  to  conquer  and 
advantageous  to  die.  Illustrious  knights,  generous  defenders 
of  the  Cross,  remember  the  example  of  your  fathers  who 
conquered  Jerusalem,  and  whose  names  are  inscribed  in 
heaven ;  abandon  then  the  things  that  perish  to  gather 
unfading  palms,  and  conquer  a  kingdom  which  has  no 
end."^ 

3.  For  English  readers,  a  special  interest  attaches  to 
the  Anglo-Saxon  homilies  which  have  been  preserved.^ 
Bede's  sermons  have  come  down  to  us  in  Latin,  and  so 
offer  no  indication  of  preaching  in  the  mother-tongue.  As 
Charlemagne  interested  himself  in  preaching  in  his  empire, 
so  did  King  Alfred  (871-901)  in  his  reahn.  He  himself 
translated  Gregory  the  Great's  book  on  pastoral  theology ; 
and  to  his  reforming  zeal  are  due  the  collections  we  have  of 
Anglo-Saxon  sermons.  They  do  not  show  any  originality, 
but  a  dependence  on  Latin  sermons  (Gregory,  Bede,  and 
>  OME  ii.  pp.  37-38.  2  hlh,  pp.  67-68. 


104  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

others).  The  Blickling  Homilies  (so  called  after  the  place 
where  they  were  found),  edited  by  Morris  for  the  Early 
Enghsh  Text  Society  (London,  1880),  belong  to  about 
971.  The  homilies  of  ^Elfric,  a  learned  Benedictine 
monk,  known  as  the  Grammarian,  and  probably  identical 
with  an  archbishop  of  York  of  that  name  (1023-1051), 
have  been  edited  by  Thorpe  for  the  ^Kric  Society,  under 
the  title  of  The  Homilies  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  Church 
(London,  1844).  They  are  valuable  from  a  linguistic 
standpoint  as  "  a  pure  model  of  the  beautiful  Saxon 
mother-tongue,  and  on  that  account  alone  are  of  the  highest 
significance."  ^  One  passage  from  a  sermon  by  .^Ifric  on 
the  Paschal  Lamb  may  be  given  : 

"  That  innocent  lamb  which  the  old  Israelites  did  then 
kill,  had  signification  after  ghostly  (spiritual)  understanding 
of  Christ's  suffering,  who  unguilty  shed  his  holy  blood  for 
our  redemption.     Hereof  sing  God's  servants  at  every  mass — 

'Agnus  dei,  qui  tollis  peccata  mundi,  miserere  nobis.' 

That  is  in  our  speech.  Thou  Lamb  of  God,  that  takest  away 
the  sins  of  the  world,  have  mercy  upon  us.  Those  Israelites 
were  delivered  from  that  sudden  death,  and  from  Pharaoh's 
bondage,  by  the  lamb's  offering,  which  signified  Christ's 
suffering :  through  which  we  be  delivered  from  everlasting 
death,  and  from  the  devil's  cruel  reign,  if  we  rightly  believe 
in  the  true  redeemer  of  the  whole  world,  Christ  the  Saviour. 
The  lamb  was  offered  in  the  evening,  and  our  Saviour 
suffered  in  the  sixth  age  of  this  world.  This  age  of  this 
corruptible  world  is  reckoned  unto  the  evening.  They 
marked  with  the  lamb's  blood  upon  the  doors,  and  the 
upper  posts,  Tau,  that  is  the  sign  of  the  Cross,  and  were  so 
defended  from  the  angel  that  killed  the  Egyptian's  first- 
born child.  And  we  ought  to  mark  our  foreheads  and  our 
bodies  with  the  token  of  Christ's  rood,  that  we  may  be  also 
delivered  from  destruction,  when  we  shall  be  marked  both 
on  forehead  and  also  in  heart  with  the  blood  of  our  Lord's 
sufferings.  Those  Israelites  ate  the  lamb's  flesh  at  their 
Easter  time,  when  they  were  delivered,  and  we  receive 
ghostly  (spiritually)  Christ's  body  and  drink  his  blood  when 
we  receive  with  true  belief  that  holy  housell  (sacrament). 

^  Schoell  in  Herzog,  i.  p.  185,  quoted  in  DHPI,  p.  170. 


PRIEST,   MONK,   AND   FRIAR  105 

That  time  they  kept  with  them  at  Easter  seven  days  with 
great  worship,  when  they  were  delivered  from  Pharaoh  and 
went  from  that  land.  So  also  Christian  men  keep  Christ's 
resurrection  at  the  time  of  Easter  these  seven  days,  because 
through  his  suffering  and  rising  we  be  delivered,  and  be 
made  clean  by  going  to  his  holy  housell  (sacrament),  as 
Christ  saith  in  his  Gospel,  Verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you.  Ye 
have  no  life  in  you  except  ye  eat  my  flesh  and  drink  my 
blood."  1 

This  sermon  is  of  theological  interest,  as  it  was  printed 
and  translated  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth  to  prove  that,  as 
regards  the  Supper,  the  ancient  Church  of  England  held 
the  same  doctrine  as  the  Keformers.^ 

4.  A  monastery  which  gained  distinction  for  the 
preaching  of  its  monks  was  that  of  St.  Victor  of  Paris, 
founded  by  William  of  Champeaux  in  1108.  The  cosmo- 
politanism of  the  Mediaeval  Church  is  shown  in  the  fact 
that  of  the  two  most  famous  preachers  of  this  monastery, 
Hugo  (died  1141)  and  Richard  (died  1173),  the  one  was  a 
Saxon  and  the  other  a  Scotsman.  While  both  were 
mystics,  they  combined  mysticism  with  scholasticism, 
Hugo  in  a  higher  degree  even  than  Eichard,  for,  while  the 
second  divided  the  soul's  ascent  to  God  into  three  stages — 
cogitation,  meditation,  contemplation — the  first  divided 
each  of  these  stages  again  into  two,  so  reaching  six  steps, 
the  highest  of  which  was  a  religious  ecstasy  above  reason.' 
The  sermons  of  both  suffer  from  the  extravagances  of 
scholasticism. 

III. 

1.  Of  vital  significance  for  the  history  of  preaching  is 
the  rise  of  the  mendicant  orders,  or  the  friars.  When  the 
papacy  in  Innocent  asserted  its  supremacy  at  the  Fourth 
Lateran  Council  in  1215 — 

i  LELR,  pp.  22-23. 

*  Observe  in  the  quotation  the  qualifying  ghostly  of  the  reception  of 
Christ's  body. 

*  DHPI,  pp.  216-218. 


106  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"  Eome  had  conquered,  yet  the  victory  was  gained  at  the 
expense  of  religion,  as  the  innumerable  sectaries  showed  who 
sought  guidance  beyond  the  Church,  and  listened  to  a  Gospel 
no  priest  would  proclaim.  Heresy  was  rampant,  because 
the  Church  had  turned  from  Christ  to  the  world,  and  her 
servants  had  not  gone  forth  into  the  highways  and  byways 
of  Christendom,  to  teach  the  people  the  orthodox  creed  and 
to  lead  them  into  truth.  Innocent  himself  was  not  ignorant 
of  the  perversion  of  the  Church,  and  when  the  mendicants 
appeared  and  offered,  though  they  were  not  all  priests,  to 
instruct  the  people  in  the  knowledge  of  the  Bible  and  the 
doctrines  of  theology,  he  did  not  seek  to  crush  them,  but 
retained  them  as  obedient  servants.  Thus  it  happened  that 
when  religion  was  impotent  in  the  hearts  of  the  people,  the 
friars  arose  and  stirred  it  into  life  and  strength ;  and  when 
the  Church  was  a  v,  orldly  institution,  and  her  priests  had 
departed  from  the  spirit  of  Christ,  these  friars  devoted 
themselves  to  the  missionary  labour  to  which  He  had 
consecrated  Himself.  Their  ideal  was  noble,  their  aim  the 
loftiest,  while  yet  they  retained  the  zeal  and  piety  of  their 
founders ;  but  ere  many  years  had  passed  after  their  recog- 
nition as  Orders,  the  Church  succeeded  in  binding  them  to 
her  own  worldly  uses.  Eome  profited  by  their  foundation. 
Her  dominion  over  the  ecclesiastics  of  any  land  might  perish 
through  the  combination,  of  a  national  clergy ;  but  such  a 
combination,  she  saw,  was  less  likely  to  be  formed  if  the 
mendicants  who  had  broken  worldly  ties  acted  as  her 
emissaries.  Her  political  power  might  suffer  with  the  death 
of  the  great  pope  to  whom  the  earth  seemed  given  for  a 
possession;  but  it  might  be  saved  if  the  mendicants, 
wandering  in  all  countries,  preached  the  Gospel  of  papal 
supremacy.  Many  were  the  offices  of  the  friars.  They 
spread  throughout  the  world,  filling  the  seats  of  learning, 
attaining  ecclesiastical  pre-eminence,  serving  as  directors 
of  kings,  acting  as  instructors  of  the  people ;  now  reviving 
religion,  now  quickening  church  life,  and  preserving  for 
Eome  a  semblance  at  least  of  that  power  which  HOde- 
brand  had  sought  and  Innocent  wielded,  retaining  for 
her  a  fragment  of  that  dominion  which  the  one  had  seen 
in  vision  and  the  other  had  beheld  extending  from  sea  to 
8ea."i 

^  Herkless,  Fraiids  and  Dominic,  pp.  13-15.     See  also  Brown's  Puritan 
Preaching  in  England,  pp.  15-27. 


PRIEST,    MONK,    AND    FRIAR  107 

Seldom  has  the  power  of  preaching  been  proved  as  it  was 
by  the  friars. 

2.  St.  Francis  of  Assisi  (1182-1226)  is  one  of  the 
most  beautiful,  gracious,  and  attractive  figures  in  the 
history  of  the  Christian  Church.  He  has  been  compared 
with  Gautama  the  Buddha,  and  there  is  a  close  resem- 
blance. While  our  reverence  forbids  our  comparing  him 
to  Jesus,  yet  few,  if  any,  have  followed  more  closely  in  the 
Master's  steps  than,  according  to  his  understanding,  did 
this  disciple.  At  his  conversion  he  resolved  to  give  up 
everything,  and  wholly  to  follow  Christ  in  poverty, 
humility,  and  love.  Soon  after,  in  the  year  1209,  Christ 
called  him  to  preach  and  heal,  without  any  provision  for 
his  needs,  even  as  the  Twelve  had  been  commanded  to  do. 
At  once  he  obeyed  ;  and,  clothed  in  "  the  brown  woolen 
gown,  tied  with  a  rope,"  the  dress  of  the  poorest,  and 
barefooted,  he  entered  on  his  mission.  He  won  converts ; 
and,  although  he  had  no  wish  to  found  an  order,  yet  those 
who  gathered  around  him,  and  were  sent  out  by  him  two 
and  two,  soon  formed  a  brotherhood,  the  rule  of  which  was 
in  the  words  from  the  Gospels  in  which  Francis  himself 
had  received  his  call  to  serve.  The  relation  of  the  order 
to  the  papacy  does  not  here  concern  us,  as  our  interest  is 
in  its  preaching  and  ministry  to  the  people.  Even 
although  chui'ches  were  put  at  the  disposal  of  Francis, 
he  preferred  to  preach  in  the  open  air  to  the  crowds  who 
gathered  around  him.  His  style  of  preaching  was  like  his 
surroundings.  Although  he  was  not  altogether  free  of  the 
superstitions  of  the  age,  a  subtle  intellectualism  or  a  rigid 
dogmatism  was  quite  foreign  to  him,  and  he  preached 
Christ  out  of  the  fulness  of  his  own  heart,  and  called  men 
to  follow  Christ,  even  as  he  himself  did. 

As  the  brotherhood  grew  in  numbers,  its  field  of 
labour  widened.  It  did  not  confine  its  labours  within 
Christendom.  Syria  was  visited  by  brother  Elias,  and 
Francis  himself  tried,  although  at  first  he  failed,  to  carry 
the  Gospel  to  the  Mohammedans  of  the  East  and  Morocco. 
It  is  uncertain  whether  he  did  reach  the  Moors  in  Spain. 


108  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

Several  stories  are  told  about  visits  he  afterwards  paid  to 
Moslem  lands.^ 

3,  At  the  time  heresy  was  widespread  in  England, 
France,  Germany,  Belgium,  Italy  itself.  Of  the  numerous 
sects,  united  only  in  their  opposition  to  Rome,  only  one 
here  calls  for  mention,  the  Waldenses, 

"Peter  Waldo  of  Lyons,  with  whose  name  the  Walden- 
sians  are  associated,  seeking  to  lead  the  life  in  Christ, 
distributed  his  goods  to  the  poor  and  began  to  preach  the 
gospel.  Causing  a  translation  of  parts  of  the  New  Testament, 
and  also  of  '  Sentences '  from  the  Fathers,  to  be  made,  he 
distributed  these  by  the  hands  of  disciples  sent  out,  two  by 
two,  to  teach  and  to  preach.  Poverty  and  simplicity  of 
religious  ceremony  were  the  distinctive  works  of  the 
Waldensians.  They  did  not  spare  the  reputation  of  the 
clergy,  and  being  subjected  to  persecution,  appealed  to  Pope 
Alexander  in.,  who  approved  their  poverty  but  condemned 
them  for  preaching.  The  time  had  not  come  for  sanctioning 
an  irregular  ministry.  A  few  years  later,  at  the  Council  of 
Verona,  Pope  Lucius  iii.  excommunicated  them  as  heretics. 
This  condemnation,  however,  did  not  end  their  progress."  ^ 

The  Waldensian  Church  still  exists,  and  is  taking  a 
large  share  to-day  in  the  evangelisation  of  Italy.  It  is 
probable  that  Francis  was  not  ignorant  of  and  uninfluenced 
by  them  in  founding  his  order,  which  shows  many  points 
of  resemblance.  Probable  also  is  it  that  Dominic,  the 
founder  of  the  second  great  order,  was  led  by  them,  as 
well  as  by  the  more  extreme  sects,  to  use  preaching  in  the 
interests  of  the  Church. 

4.  Dominic  (born  1170  in  the  Castilian  village  of 
Calaruega),  as  the  assistant  of  Azevedo,  Bishop  of  Osma 
in  1203,  on  the  return  journey  to  Spain  from  Eome,  was 
brought  into  close  contact  with  the  heresy  prevalent  in 
Southern  France.  The  sect  which  was  most  dangerous  to 
the  church  was  the  Cathari,  called  Patarines  in  Italy  and 
Albigenses  in  Languedoc.  Dominic  and  Azevedo,  laying 
aside   all  ecclesiastical   state    and   assuming  the  guise  of 

^  See  Herkless,  op.  cit.,  pp.  16-38  ;  DHPI,  pp.  247-252. 
'  Herkless,  op.  cit.,  pp.  84-85. 


PRIEST,   MONK,  AND  FRIAR  109 

poverty,  devoted  themselves,  despite  the  indifference  of  the 
bishops,  to  missionary  labours  to  strengthen  the  Church, 
and  to  refute,  when  they  did  not  succeed  in  converting, 
the  heretics.  Dominic  proved  himself  a  very  powerful 
preacher,  and  his  life  was  imperilled,  as  the  heretics 
dreaded  his  influence.  The  miracles  ascribed  to  him  need 
not  detain  us.  Around  him  there  gathered  a  number  of 
men,  eager  if  not  altogether  capable  of  sharing  his 
labours  against  the  heretics. 

"  With  papal  permission,  therefore,  they  ordained  com- 
petent men,  wherever  they  could  be  found,  and  thus  was 
associated,  not  an  Order,  but  a  company  to  meet  heretical 
with  orthodox  doctrine.  While  many  of  the  Cathari  were 
restored  to  the  faith,  real  progress  was  slow,  since  the  charge 
was  constantly  preferred  that  clerics,  high  and  low,  were 
everywhere  disgracing  their  calling."  ^ 

The  papacy,  men  said,  preferred  the  sword  to  the 
word  as  a  weapon ;  and  in  1208  the  cruel  and  shameful 
crusade  against  the  Albigenses  took  place.  In  this  violent 
repression  there  is  no  evidence  that  Dominic  took  any 
part,  and  an  early  biographer  gives  this  account  of  him : 

"  St.  Dominic,  left  almost  alone  with  a  few  companions 
who  were  bound  to  him  by  no  vow,  during  ten  years  upheld 
the  Catholic  faith  in  different  parts  of  Narbonne,  especially 
at  Carcassonne  and  Fanjeaux.  He  devoted  himself  entirely 
to  the  salvation  of  souls  by  the  ministry  of  preaching,  and 
he  bore  with  a  great  heart  a  multitude  of  affronts,  ignominies, 
and  sufferings  for  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ."  * 

It  is  not  proved  that  he  was  ever  appointed  to,  or 
exercised  the  office  of  an  Inquisitor,  although  after  his 
death  the  Dominicans  (the  Domini  caries,  the  Lord's 
hounds)  were  most  devoted  agents  of  the  Inquisition. 
One  would  be  glad  to  think  that  he  wished  to  use  no 
carnal,  but  only  spiritual  weapons  in  the  fight  for  the  faith. 
What  is  certain  is  that  he  did  found  an  order,  the 
members  of  which  were  to  be  not  only  popular  preachers, 
but  also  learned  theologians,  a  combination  which  at  the 

*  Herkless,  op,  ciL,  p.  89.  ^  Quoted  by  Herkless,  op,  cit.,  p.  90. 


110  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

present  day  is  regarded  by  many  persons  as  impracticable. 
On  this  subject,  however,  a  few  sentences  may  be  quoted : 

"  One  significant  fact  about  this  thirteenth  century  move- 
ment," says  Dr.  Brown,^  "  is  that  while  aiming  at  what  some 
would  call  mere  popular  preaching,  it  allied  itself  with  an 
enlightened  love  of  learning.  The  scientific  speculative 
spirit  of  that  time,  so  far  as  it  was  imbued  with  religious 
feeling,  was  powerfully  influenced  by  leading  Franciscans 
and  Dominicans.  As  in  the  first  century  the  greatest 
missionary,  the  Apostle  Paul,  was  also  the  greatest  theologian, 
so  in  the  thirteenth  century  the  most  effective  teachers  of 
the  people  were  the  most  ardent  metaphysicians  and 
theologians.  Among  them  we  find  the  great  schoolmen 
of  the  continent — Albertus  Magnus,  Bonaventura,  and 
Thomas  Aquinas;  also  the  great  English  schoolmen — 
Alexander  of  Hales,  John  Duns  Scotus,  and  Eoger  Bacon." 

The  order  of  Dominic  obtained  the  papal  sanction  in  1215 
on  condition  of  an  alliance  with  one  of  the  existing  orders ; 
and  the  Rule  of  Augustine  was  adopted.  The  story  of  the 
order  need  not  be  followed  further.  Worn  out  with  his 
labours,  and  regardless  of  his  health,  Dominic  died  at  the 
age  of  fifty,  in  1221.  Ominous  as  the  word  Dominican 
afterwards  became,  we  cannot  doubt  the  founder's  true 
intent. 

5,  To  the  Franciscan  order  belonged  the  two  most 
famous  preachers  of  their  time,  Antony  of  Padua  (c.  1195- 
1231)  and  Berthold  of  Regensburg  (c.  1220-1272). 
Antony  was  born  in  Lisbon;  fired  with  missionary  zeal 
by  seeing  at  Coimbra  the  remains  of  two  Franciscan 
missionaries  who  had  been  martyred  in  Morocco,  he 
abandoned  the  Augustinian  order,  and,  becoming  a  Francis- 
can, sailed  for  Africa,  seeking  there  martyrdom.  Recog- 
nising in  a  serious  illness  God's  leading,  he  left  Africa  for 
Italy,  the  home  of  the  Franciscan  movement.  For  ten 
years  he  preached  in  Italy  with  growing  fame.  For  the 
last  two  years  of  his  life  he  exercised  his  ministry  of 
preaching  at  Padua.  The  report  runs  that  sometimes 
thirty  thousand  people  thronged  to  hear  him,  as  he  preached 

»  Op.  cit.,  pp.  23-24. 


PRIEST,   MONK,   AND   FRIAR  111 

in  the  open  air  with  great  power  and  abundant  fruit.  No 
complete  sermon  of  his  has  been  preserved ;  and,  even  if 
any  of  the  outlines  of  sermons  which  bear  his  name  are 
authentic,  they  cannot  reveal  to  us  the  secret  of  his  power. 
While  using  the  allegorical  method  in  the  interpretation  of 
the  Scriptures,  he  is  guided  by  the  scholastic  analytical 
method  of  theology  in  his  arrangement  of  the  matter,  and 
illumines  his  treatment  by  effective  illustrations  from  the 
world  and  the  life  around  him.^ 

6.  Berthold  of  Eegensburg  (Ratisbon  in  Bavaria) 
preached  to  the  common  people  from  Austria  to  the  Ehine 
and  even  Switzerland,  and  northwards  to  Thuringia  and 
Franconia,  for  twenty  years.  He  did  not  in  any  way 
oppose  himself  to  the  teaching  of  the  Church ;  but  he 
insisted,  without  any  of  the  reservations  which  lowered 
the  practice  of  the  Church,  on  "  true  repentance,  honest 
confession,  and  strict  or  severe  penance,"  in  short,  complete 
satisfaction.  While  not  attacking  the  absolution  of  the 
Church,  he  was  opposed  to  the  sale  of  indulgences.  The 
sins  of  greed  and  meanness,  luxury  and  self-indulgence,  he 
ruthlessly  denounced ;  and  the  common  people  heard  his 
attacks  on  the  rich  and  mighty  gladly.  But  he  did  not 
spare  the  vices  of  the  people ;  and  dealt  alike  with  high 
and  low,  rich  and  poor : 

"  He  has  a  Bunyan-like  power  of  using  quaint  similitudes, 
and  can  still  be  read  with  interest  for  his  parables  and  com- 
parisons. No  church  could  hold  the  multitudes  that  flocked 
to  hear  him,  and  he  preached  in  the  market-places  and  fields 
to  thousands,  reckoned  by  the  fifty  or  the  hundred — vague 
numbers,  but  telling  of  the  immense  popularity  of  the  man, 
and  of  the  growing  desire  to  listen  to  Christian  truth  when 
presented  plainly  in  the  mother-tongue."  ^ 

Simple  and  natural  as  his  preaching  appeared,  a  closer 
scrutiny  shows  the  intention  and  the  method  of  the  trained 
orator.  His  lively  imagination  probably  explains  his 
arbitary  treatment  of  the  Scriptures.  To  use  a  modern 
distinction,  his  sermons  are  not  expository  but  topical ;  and 
1  See  DHPI,  pp.  252-256.  «  KHP,  pp.  127-128. 


112  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

the  subject  is  generally  very  loosely  attached  to  the  text. 
The  divisions,  too,  are  often  very  fanciful.^ 

7.  That  the  Franciscan  order  paid  attention  to  the 
theory  as  well  as  the  practice  of  preaching,  is  shown  by  the 
small  book  of  Bonaventura  on  The  Art  of  Preacliing.  We 
may  place  alongside  of  it  the  work  of  Hubert  de  Eomanis, 
General  of  the  Dominican  Order,  entitled  De  Eruditione 
Prcedicatorum,  of  which  Dr.  Brown  gives  an  account : 

"  He  speaks  of  preaching  as  above  the  mass  and  all 
liturgical  services.  '  For '  says  he, '  of  the  Latin  Liturgy  the 
laity  understands  nothing ;  but  they  can  understand  the 
sermon ;  and  hence  by  preaching  God  is  glorified  in  a 
clearer  and  more  open  manner  than  by  any  other  act  of 
worship.'  This  work  of  Hubert's  on  preaching  may  be 
described  as  epoch-making,  appearing  as  it  did  after  long  cen- 
turies of  comparative  silence.  It  sets  forth  to  the  members 
of  the  Order  the  obhgation  under  which  they  were  placed  to 
preach  the  Gospel;  the  gravity  and  dignity  of  this  great 
work;  and  the  qualifications  necessary  for  its  effective 
discharge.  Of  all  spiritual  exercises  in  which  monks 
employed  themselves,  preaching  was  set  forth  as  the  highest, 
and  whoever  possessed  the  talent  for  it,  was  bound  to 
cultivate  it  to  the  utmost.  .  ,  .  While  thus  urging  the 
importance  of  preaching,  he  also  set  before  the  members 
of  the  Order  the  most  effective  way  of  doing  it,  and  the 
best  way  of  making  the  most  of  themselves  as  preachers. 
'Though,'  says  he,  'the  talent  for  preaching  is  obtained 
through  the  special  gift  of  God,  yet  the  wise  preacher  will 
do  his  own  part  of  the  work,  and  diligently  study  that  he 
may  preach  correctly.'  He  warns  the  brethren  against 
making  a  mere  display  of  their  own  ingenuity  and  eloquence, 
as,  for  example,  deriving  the  theme  of  their  discourse  from 
a  text  altogether  foreign  to  the  matter  in  hand.  Such 
devices,  he  thinks,  are  more  likely  to  excite  derision  than 
promote  edification.  As  for  those  who  looked  more  to  fine 
words  than  true  and  noble  thoughts,  they  seemed  to  him  to 
be  like  people  who  were  more  concerned  to  display  their 
beautiful  dishes  than  to  provide  food  for  their  guests."  2 

^  HLH,  pp.  69-71.  The  best  edition  of  bis  sermons  is  that  of  Pfeifer, 
Vienna,  1862,  1880.  A  translation  into  modern  German  was  made  by 
Gobel  in  1849. 

2  Op.  cit.,  pp.  17-19. 


PRIEST,   MONK,   AND   FRIAR  113 

Dr.  Brown  also  mentions  a  book  on  preaching  by  Guibert 
of  Novigentum. 

8.  The  greatest  theologian  of  the  Mediaeval  Age,  who 
is  still  regarded  as  the  authoritative  teacher  in  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church,  was  Thomas  Aquinas  (1225-1274); 
but  he  too  was  a  preacher  acceptable  to  the  people.  His 
preaching  is  thus  described  by  Broadus : 

"  Amid  the  immense  and  amazing  mass  of  his  works  are 
many  brief  discourses,  marked  by  clearness,  simplicity,  and 
practical  point.  He  is  not  highly  imaginative  nor  flowing 
in  expression ;  the  sentences  are  short,  and  everything  runs 
into  division  and  subdivision,  usually  by  threes.  But  while 
there  is  no  ornament  and  no  swelling  passion,  he  uses  many 
homely  and  lively  comparisons,  for  explanation  as  well  as 
for  argument."  ^ 

Dargan  extracts  from  an  English  translation  of  some  of 
his  sermons,^  the  outline  of  two  on  the  same  subject  and 
text: 

"  The  Mystical  Ship,  Matt.  viii.  23.  Four  things  are  to 
be  considered  in  this  Gospel:  (1)  The  entering  of  Christ 
and  his  disciples  into  a  ship ;  (2)  the  great  tempest  in  the 
sea;  (3)  the  prayer  of  the  disciples;  (4)  the  obedience  of 
the  storm  to  the  command  of  Christ.  Morally  we  are 
taught  four  things :  (1)  To  enter  into  holiness  of  life ;  (2) 
that  temptations  rage  after  we  have  entered ;  (3)  in  these 
temptations  to  cry  unto  the  Lord ;  (4)  to  look  for  a  calm 
according  to  his  will.  The  next  sermon  continues  thfr  same 
subject  and  shows  how  a  ship  symbolizes  holiness.  I.  The 
Material:  (1)  The  wood  represents  righteousness.  (2)  The 
iron,  strength.  (3)  The  oakum,  by  which  leaks  are  stopped, 
temperance.  (4)  The  pitch,  charity.  II.  The  Form :  (1) 
Smallness  at  the  beginning  represents  grief  for  sin.  (2) 
Breadth  of  the  middle,  hope  of  eternal  joy.  (3)  Height  of 
stern,  fear  of  eternal  punishment.  (4)  Narrowness  of  keel, 
humility.  III.  The  Uses :  (1)  To  carry  men  over  seas :  in 
holiness  we  go  to  honour.     (2)  To  carry  merchandise:  in 

^  History  of  Preaching,  p.  106  f.,  quoted  in  DHPI,  p.  241. 

^  T^e  Homilies  of  S.  Thomas  Aqiiinas  upon  the  Epistles  and  Gospels  for 
the  Sundays  of  the  Christian  Year,  translated  by  John  N.  Ashley      London 
1873. 


114  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

holiness  we  carry  good  works.  (3)  To  make  war :  in  holi- 
ness we  fight  against  the  demons."  ^ 

It  is  ingenious  and  interesting  preaching ;  and  this 
sermon  at  least  would  not  justify  Ker's  too  sweeping 
judgment  regarding  the  influence  of  the  Summa  Theologice : 

"The  preaching  founded  on  it  addresses  itself  to  the 
intellect  rather  than  to  the  heart  or  conscience,  and  to  the 
intellect  of  the  Schools  rather  than  to  common  intelligence 
and  reason."  2 

His  preaching  generally  was  scholastic  in  content  and 
method,  and  yet  there  is  evidence  that  he  was  popular. 

9.  During  the  Middle  Ages,  scholasticism  and  mysti- 
cism were  blended  in  varying  proportions :  Hugo  and 
Richard  of  St.  Victor,  who  have  already  been  mentioned, 
were  more  mystical  than  scholastic ;  Albertus  Magnus 
and  Thomas  Aquinas  were  much  more  scholastic  than 
mystical.  Bonaventura  (1221—1274),  the  "doctor  seraphi- 
cus,"  has  been  described  as  "  the  greatest  scholastic  among 
the  mystics,  and  the  greatest  mystic  among  the  scholastics."  ^ 
The  outline  of  a  sermon  on  the  Life  of  Service  *  may  be 
given  : 

Christ  in  the  Gospel  offers  us  "  four  very  notable  things 
.  .  .  namely,  the  Cross  in  the  chastisement  of  our  evil 
natures ;  His  Body  in  Sacramental  Communion ;  the  Holy 
Ghost  in  mental  unction ;  the  Penny  in  eternal  remunera- 
tion."   The   reasons    for   taking   up    the    Cross   are   four: 

(1)  "  the  irrefutable  example  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ " ; 

(2)  the  "  invincible  help  "  of  the  Lord  ;  (3)  the  "  inviolable 
privileges  of  those  who  bear  the  marks  of  the  Lord  Jesus  " ; 
and  (4)  "  a  reward  that  cannot  be  lost. " 

The  sermon  is  full  of  quaint  fancies  and  strained  anal- 
ogies. He  developed  the  mystic  teaching  both  of  St. 
Bernard  and  the  Victorines  by  the  scholastic  method  of 
subtle  refinements  and  distinctions,  and  yet  an  intensely 
religious  spirit  gives  life  to  the  dry  bones. 

10.  Bonaventura  and  his  predecessors  had  moved 
within  the  range  of  ecclesiastical  orthodoxy;  but  in  the 

•  DHPI,  pp.  241-242.  "  KHP,  p.  125. 

»  DHPI,  pp.  273-276.  *  CME  ii.  pp.  149-151. 


PRIEST,   MONK,    AND   FRIAR  115 

fourteenth  century  there  appeared  what  may  be  described 
as  a  speculative  development  of  mysticism. — (1)  The 
first  of  the  succession  was  Meister  Eckhart  (died  1327). 
He  started  from  the  conception  of  God  in  the  Pseudo- 
Dionysius  and  borrowed  much  also  from  Thomas  Aquinas ; 
but  he  carried  out  all  the  logical  consequences  of  the 
conception  of  God  as  undefined  and  undefinable  reality. 
His  speculation,  however,  was  inspired  by  an  intense 
inward,  world-renouncing  piety,  even  as  was  Spinoza's. 
His  pantheistic  expressions  sprang  out  of  his  passionate 
desire  to  escape  from  self  and  to  be  united  to  God.  It  is 
this  "  inwardness  "  which  attracted  many  at  a  time  when 
the  religion  of  the  Church  had  become  external  and 
mechanical ;  many  appreciated  the  piety  who  could  not 
apprehend  the  philosophy.^ 

(2)  Less  speculative  and  more  practical  was  John 
Tauler  (1290-1361),  who  influenced  Luther  in  the  same 
way  as  William  Law  afterwards  influenced  John  Wesley. 
At  Strasburg  he 

"filled  the  immense  cathedral  with  crowds,  and  preached 
the  Gospel  fervently  when  the  black  death  raged  in  1348." 
He  "  was  strongly  influenced  by  Nicolas  von  Basel,  a 
Waldense,"  and  used  his  "  wonderful  power  on  behalf  of  the 
oppressed,  and  against  the  avarice  and  luxury  of  clergy  and 
laity,  not  sparing  even  the  Pope."  ^ 

The  aim  of  all  his  preaching  is  the  "  unmaking  "  of  man 
that  he  may  be  "  made  again "  in  God ;  and  the  means 
he  urges  is  the  Cross,  by  which  alone,  willingly  accepted 
and  submissively  endured  in  imitation  of  Christ,  perfection 
can  be  attained.  While  there  is  an  ascetic  aspect  in  the 
morality  he  enjoins,  he  places  love  above  contemplation : 
he  practised  what  he  preached  in  ministering  to  the 
plague-stricken.  While  he  shows  little  art  as  an  orator, 
his  speech  is  vitalised  by  his  spirituality,  reverence,  and 
solicitude.^ 

1  HLH,  pp.  71-73.  2  KHP,  pp.  125-126. 

'  HLH,  pp.  73-74.     The  following  extract  illustrates  the  inwardness  of 
his  piety  :  "How,  children,  would  a  man  attain  to  such  a  point  that  the 


116  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

(3)  Less  great  a  personality,  but  a  more  poetic  and 
artistic  preacher,  was  Henry  Suso  (1295—1366),  of  whose 
preaching  Dargan  gives  us  a  suggestive  description : 

"  His  soft  and  sentimental  nature  made  him  the  idol  of 
the  nunneries  and  of  the  devout  women  in  all  ranks."  ^ 

IV. 

The  mystics  represent  the  unconscious  revolt  of  the 
soul  against  mediaeval  religion  in  the  Church :  in  them  we 
have  the  first  stirrings  of  a  new  life.  More  explicit 
expression  to  the  "  divine  discontent "  was  given  by  four 
men,  who  may  be  described  as  heralds  of  the  dawn. 

1,  The  greatest  of  these  was  John  Wyclif  (between 
1320  and  1330-1384).  (1)  He  first  came  into  promi- 
nence as  the  champion  of  national  feeling  against  papal 
aggression.  This  made  him  also  the  opponent  of  the 
mendicant  orders,  who,  as  we  have  already  noted,  were  the 
zealous  servants  of  the  Papacy.  With  his  political  and 
theological  activities  we  are  not  concerned,  but  with  his 
preaching,  of  which  he  made  effective  use  in  this  conflict.'^ 

outward  things  should  not  hinder  the  inward  workings  of  the  soul,  that 
would  be  indeed  above  all  a  blessed  thing  ;  for  two  things  are  better  than 
one.  But  if  thou  find  that  the  outward  work  hinders  the  inward  workings 
of  the  soul,  then  boldly  let  it  go,  and  turn  with  all  thy  might  to  that  which 
is  inward,  for  God  esteemeth  it  far  before  that  which  is  outward.  Now  we 
priests  do  on  this  wise  ;  for  during  the  fast  days  in  Lent  we  have  many 
services,  but  at  Easter  and  Whitsuntide  we  shorten  our  services  and  say 
fewer  prayers,  for  the  greatness  of  the  festival.  So  likewise  do  thou  when 
thou  art  bidden  to  this  high  festival  of  inward  converse  ;  and  fear  not  to 
lay  aside  outward  exercises,  if  else  they  would  be  a  snare  and  hindrance  to 
thee,  except  in  so  far  as  thou  art  bound  to  perform  them  for  the  sake  of 
order.  For  I  tell  thee  of  a  truth,  that  the  pure  inward  work  is  a  divine  and 
blessed  life,  in  which  we  shall  be  led  into  all  truth,  if  we  can  but  keep  our- 
selves pure  and  separate,  and  undisturbed  by  outward  anxieties.  ...  By 
such  exercises,  with  love,  the  soul  becomes  very  quick  to  feel  God's  touch, 
far  more  so  than  by  any  outward  practices  of  devotion  "  {History  and  Life 
of  the  Reverend  Doctor  John  Tauler,  with  Twenty-five  of  his  Sermons,  trans- 
lated by  Susanna  Winkworth  (London,  1857),  pp.  345-346). 

1  DHPI,  p.  280. 

^  His  sermons  have  been  preserved  both  in  Latin  (ed.  Loserth,  Johannis 
Wyclif  sermones,  4  vols.,  London,  1887-1890)  and  English  (Th.  Arnold, 
SeUa  English  Works  of  John  Wyclif,  vol.  i.,  1869  ;  vol.  ii.,  1871).     Hering 


PKIEST,   MONK,   AND   FRIAR  117 

At  Oxford  he  was  noted  as  a  schoolman,  "  in  philosophy 
second  to  none,  in  the  training  of  the  schools  without  a 
rival " ;  but  "  from  subtle  disputations  he  passed  into 
politics.  He  was  the  brains  of  the  party  who  sought  in 
Parliament  and  elsewhere  to  resist  the  papal  claims. 
Hitherto  reformers  had  attempted  to  accomplish  their 
purposes  from  within,  and  would  have  resisted  outside 
interference.  Wyclif  introduced  a  new  thing  into  the 
mediaeval  world  by  calling  upon  the  State  to  reform  an 
unwilling  clergy.  Next  he  laboured  to  effect  the  revival 
of  religious  life  by  the  restoration  of  simple  preaching, 
'  a  humble  and  homely  proclamation  of  the  gospel,'  and 
the  distribution  to  the  people  of  the  Word  of  God.  He 
struck  hard  at  the  current  methods  of  the  pulpit,  the 
endless  logical  distinctions  and  divisions,  '  the  subtle  hair- 
splitting which  the  apostles  would  have  despised/  the 
rhetoric,  legends,  and  poetry  which  men  substituted  for  the 
bread  of  life.  Finally,  he  felt  that  the  souls  of  men  were 
being  sacrificed  to  an  overgrown  sacramental  system,  at 
the  roots  of  which  he  struck  by  his  attack  on  the  doctrine 
of  transubstantiation.  In  all  these  aspects — Schoolman, 
Politician,  Preacher,  and  Eeformer — Wyclif  was  the  fore- 
most man  of  his  age,  the  range  of  whose  activities  was  not 
less  remarkable  than  the  energy  with  which  he  pursued 
his  aims."  ^ 

(2)  In  this  warfare  Wyclif  used  as  one  of  his  weapons 
the  Bible,  which  he  had  translated  from  the  Vulgate  into 
the  language  of  the  people.  Although  the  Church  did  not 
condemn  the  translation,  it  put  hindrances  in  the  way  of 
the  circulation ;  and  yet  the  greater  difficulty  was  the  lack 
of  the  press  to  provide  abundant  cheap  copies.  This  drove 
Wyclif  to  adopt  another  means  to  reach  the  people. 

notes  a  difference  in  the  character  of  the  sermons.  The  Latin  are  thoroughly 
scholastic  in  method,  and  were  probably  delivered  before  young  theologians. 
The  English  represent  popular  preaching,  delivered  as  recorded,  or  preserved 
only  in  outlines  (HLH,  pp.  75-76). 

^  Workman's  The  Bavm  of  the  Reformation,  vol.  i.  ;  The  Age  of  Wyclif, 
pp.  113-115. 


118  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"  He  had  unconsciously  copied  the  methods  of  St.  Francis, 
and  fallen  back  on  the  lost  secret  of  the  friars.  From 
Oxford,  as  from  Assisi  two  centuries  before,  Wyclif,  like 
Wesley  four  centuries  later,  had  sent  out  as  early  as  the 
year  1377  his  order  of '  poor  priests,'  who  in  the  highways 
and  byways  and  by  the  village  greens,  sometimes  even  in 
the  churches,  should  win  the  souls  of  the  neglected.  These 
Biblemen  were  not  laymen,  as  is  so  often  assumed.  The 
silence  of  Wyclif's  enemies  is  sufficient  proof  of  the  contrary ; 
even  Courtenay  only  calls  them  '  unauthorised  preachers,'  i.e. 
clerics  without  a  bishop's  licence.  Some,  no  doubt,  like 
Wesley's  Holy  Club,  were  men  of  culture,  students  attracted 
by  his  enthusiasm ;  the  majority,  especially  after  his  expulsion 
from  the  University,  were  simple  and  unlettered  clerks  whom 
Wyclif's  keen  eye  had  detected  among  his  parishioners  at 
Lutterworth — '  an  unlettered  man,'  he  said,  '  with  God's 
grace  can  do  more  for  the  Church  than  many  graduates ' 
{Dialogues,  54).  Clad  in  russet  robes  of  undressed  wool, 
without  sandals,  purse,  or  scrip,  a  long  staff  in  their  hand, 
dependent  for  food  and  shelter  on  the  goodwill  of  their 
neighbours,  their  only  possession  a  few  pages  of  Wyclif's 
Bible,  his  tracts  and  sermons,  moving  constantly  from  place 
to  place — for  Wyclif  feared  lest  they  should  become  '  posses- 
sioners  — not  given  '  to  games  or  to  chess,'  but '  to  the  duties 
which  befit  the  priesthood,  studious  acquaintance  with  God's 
law,  plain  preaching  of  the  word  of  God,  and  devout  thank- 
fulness,' Wyclif's  '  poor  priests,'  like  the  friars  before  them, 
soon  became  a  power  in  the  land.  How  great  must  have 
been  the  influence  of  '  these  wolves  in  sheep's  clothing,'  as 
Courtenay  called  them,  is  evident  from  the  panic-stricken 
exaggeration  of  Knighton,  '  that  every  second  man  you  met 
was  a  Lollard.'  "  ^ 

(3)  The  sermons  of  Wyclif  himself,  while  inspired  by 
a  noble  zeal  for  reform,  in  their  religious  quality  do  not 
equal  those  of  Augustine  or  Bernard,  nor  even  the  best 
products  of  mysticism.  The  details  of  the  Scripture 
narrative  he  makes  available  for  popular  edification  by  the 
allegorical  method.  For  instance,  the  seven  loaves  are  the 
Four  Gospels  and  the  three  divisions  of  the  Old  Testament, 
the  few  fish  are  the  New  Testament  epistles,  the  people 
resting  on  the  ground  are  people  humbly  disposed  to  hear 

^  The  Age  of  Wyclif,  pp.  207-209. 


PRIEST,   MONK,   AND   FRIAR  119 

the  word  of  God,  the  seven  baskets  of  fragments  are  the 
sermons  with  which  afterwards  the  people  are  to  be 
nourished,  the  four  thousand  is  the  totality  of  the  right- 
eous, which  is  marked  by  the  four  cardinal  virtues.^ 

(4)  The  following  passage  from  a  sermon  on  the  Two 
Fishings  of  Peter  (Lk  5)  not  only  illustrates  his  method 
and  style,  but  also  conveys  his  ideas  of  preaching : 

"  Two  fishings  that  Peter  fished  betokeneth  two  takings 
of  men  unto  Christ's  religion,  and  from  the  fiend  to  God. 
In  this  first  fishing  was  the  net  broken,  to  token  that  many 
men  ben  converted,  and  after  breaken  Christ's  religion  ;  but 
at  the  second  fishing,  after  the  resurrection,  when  the  net 
was  full  of  many  great  fishes,  was  not  the  net  broken,  as  the 
Gospel  saith ;  for  that  betokeneth  saints  that  God  chooseth 
to  heaven.  And  so  these  nets  that  fishers  fishen  with 
betokeneth  God's  Law,  in  which  virtues  and  truths  beii 
knitted;  and  other  properties  of  nets  tellen  properties  of 
God's  Law ;  and  void  places  between  knots  betokeneth  life 
of  kind  (nature),  that  men  have  beside  virtues.  And  four 
cardinal  virtues  ben  figured  by  knitting  of  the  net.  The 
net  is  broad  in  the  beginning,  and  after  strait  in  end,  to 
teach  that  men,  when  they  ben  turned  first,  liven  a  broad 
worldly  life ;  but  afterward,  when  they  ben  deeped  in  God's 
Law,  they  keepen  them  straitlier  from  sins.  These  fishers  of 
God  shulden  wash  their  nets  in  this  river,  for  Christ's 
preachers  shulden  clearly  tellen  God's  Law,  and  not  meddle 
with  man's  law,  that  is  troubly  water ;  for  man's  law  con- 
taineth  sharp  stones  and  trees,  by  which  the  net  of  God  is 
broken  and  fishes  wenden  out  to  the  world.  And  this 
betokeneth  Gennesareth,  that  is,  a  wonderful  birth,  for  the 
birth  by  which  a  man  is  born  of  water  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  is  much  more  wonderful  than  man's  kindly  (natural) 
birth.  Some  nets  ben  rotten,  some  ban  holes,  and  some  ben 
unclean  for  default  of  washing ;  and  thus  on  three  manners 
faileth  the  word  of  preaching.  And  matter  of  this  net  and 
breaking  thereof  given  men  great  matter  to  speak  God's 
word,  for  virtues  and  vices  and  truths  of  the  Gospel  ben 
matter  enow  to  preach  to  the  people."  ^ 

1  HLH,  pp.  75-77. 

*  LELB,  pp.  72-73.  Besides  the  book  by  "Workman  already  referred  to, 
Carrick's  Wydiffe  and  the  Lollards  (The  World's  Epoch- Makers)  may  be 
mentioned. 


120  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

2.  It  is  probable  that  Wyclif's  influence  was  more 
prominent  and  potent  abroad  than  at  home ;  for,  through 
the  personality  of  John  Huss  (1369-1415),  the  reform 
movement  in  Bohemia  was  decisively  affected  by  his  ideas. 
Huss  was  so  entirely  dependent  on  Wyclif,  that  he  often 
reproduced  his  teaching  in  his  very  words.  His  distinction 
is  that  not  only  did  he  widen  the  range  of  his  master's 
influence,  but  even  set  the  seal  of  fidelity  to  his  teaching  by 
his  death  as  a  martyr.  While  his  advocacy  of  Wyclif's 
doctrine  involved  him  in  difficulties  with  his  ecclesiastical 
superiors,  what  brought  down  on  him  the  condemnation  of 
the  Papacy  was  his  opposition  by  word  and  writing  to  an 
indulgence  granted  in  1412  by  the  pope,  John  xxiii. 

"  His  most  staunch  supporter  was  a  Bohemian  knight, 
Jerome  of  Prague,  who  had  studied  at  Oxford,  and  returned 
in  A.D.  1402  an  enthusiastic  adherent  of  Wiclifs  doctrines. 
Their  addresses  produced  an  immense  impression,  and  two 
days  later  their  disorderly  followers,  to  throw  contempt  on 
the  papal  party,  had  the  bull  of  indulgence  paraded  through 
the  streets,  on  the  breast  of  a  public  prostitute,  representing 
the  whore  of  Babylon,  and  then  cast  into  the  flames." 

Even  after  his  excommunication 

"  he  spread  his  views  all  over  the  country  by  controversial 
and  doctrinal  treatises  in  Latin  and  Bohemian,  as  well  as  by 
an  extensive  correspondence  with  his  friends  and  followers."  ^ 

He  did  not  cease  preaching,  however  great  the  peril  to 
himself.  The  Hussite  propaganda  continued  after  his 
martyrdom,  and  was  dreaded  by  the  Church  even  in  the 
time  of  Luther.  Here  is  a  glimpse  into  the  past,  given  by 
a  contemporary : 

"  Once  Dr.  Martin  spoke  these  words  to  Dr.  Eck,  when 
hard  pressed,  upon  John  Huss,  '  Dear  Doctor,  the  Hussite 
opinions  are  not  all  wrong ! '  Thereupon  said  Duke  George, 
so  loudly  that  the  whole  audience  heard,  '  God  help  us,  the 
pestilence ! '  and  he  wagged  his  head  and  placed  his  arms 
akimbo."  ^ 

'  Kurtz,  Church  History,  vol.  ii,  pp.  208-209. 

'  Quoted  by  Lindsay,  History  of  the  Refm-niation,  vol.  i,  p.  238. 


PKIEST,   MONK,   AND  FKIAR  121 

3.  Savonarola  (1452—1498),  even  as  Huss,  was  a  martyr 
for  righteousness'  sake.  (1)  Home  has  dealt  with  him  as 
one  of  the  Kulers  of  Peoples : 

"  Three  great  facts  determined  the  form  of  his  ministry, 
the  shameless  corruption  in  the  Church,  the  open  profligacy 
and  sinful  luxury  of  the  ruling  classes,  and  the  renaissance 
of  art  and  learning.  Savonarola's  sensitive  temperament 
was  profoundly  affected  by  all  these  signs  of  the  times.  It 
was  his  cross  to  live  and  bear  witness  in  days  when  the 
princes  of  the  Church  outvied,  in  greed  and  lust  and  passion, 
the  princes  of  the  State.  He  was  one  of  many  who  fled  to 
the  cloister  as  to  a  sanctuary,  to  escape  the  contagion  of  the 
plague  of  immorality.  He  was  driven  across  the  Apennines 
to  Florence  by  the  scourge  of  war  wielded  by  the  merciless 
hand  of  an  arrogant  and  ambitious  '  Vicar  of  Christ '  who 
actually  died  of  grief  and  rage  because  of  the  conclusion 
of  peace." 

At  first  the  Eenaissance  affected  the  pulpit  for  evil  rather 
than  good,  as 

"it  bred  affectation  of  learning.  It  had  its  fruit  in  the 
scholastic  temper  and  speech.  It  enriched  the  artificial 
orations  of  windy  rhetoricians  with  obscure  and  sometimes 
even  obscene  illustrations  from  the  classics."  ^ 

On  account  of  the  depraved  taste  such  preaching  en- 
couraged, Savonarola  at  first  failed  to  win  popularity. 
The  new  learning,  however,  helped  him  to  understand  the 
Scriptures  better,  and  freed  him  from  bondage  to  the 
traditions  of  the  Church ;  and  yet  so  absorbed  was  he  by 
his  practical  duty  of  fighting  against  the  evils  of  his  age, 
that  he  never  found  the  opportunity  to  think  out  for  him- 
self a  consistent  theological  position.  Rejecting  all  the 
art  of  rhetoric,  he  at  last  conquered  by  his  natural 
eloquence : 

"  The  great  moving  discourses  which  swept  all  Florence 
subsequently  into  the  cathedral  to  sit  at  Savonarola's  feet 
were  surprisingly  simple  and  direct  and  scriptural,  but  the 
passion  of  the  preacher  expressed  itself  in  the  irresistible  rush 

*  The  Romance  of  Preaching,  pp.  152-153. 


122  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

of  his  flaming  sentences  which  no  soul  could  face  and  remain 
unscathed."  ^ 

The  style  of  his  sermons  has  been  criticised  as  immoderate 
and  too  vehement ;  but  they  had  the  merit  that  many 
more  correct  utterances  lack,  they  achieved  a  great,  if  not 
enduring,  change  in  the  thought  and  life  of  a  city : 

"  No  man  has  ever  failed,"  says  Home,  "  in  the  Christian 
ministry  who  has  inspired  a  whole  people,  even  for  an  hour, 
to  aspire  to  be  subject  to  the  sovereignty  of  Christ."  ^ 

(2)  George  Eliot,  in  Romola^^  gives  a  description  of 
Savonarola's  preaching . 

"  The  sermon  here  given,"  it  is  explained  in  a  note,  "  is 
not  a  translation,  but  a  free  representation  of  Fra  Girolamo's 
preaching  in  its  more  impassioned  moments." 

The  conclusion  of  the  sermon  and  the  account  given  of 
its  immediate  efifort  may  be  quoted  as  enabling  us  to 
realise  more  vividly  than  a  prosaic  historical  narrative 
cq,uld,  the  character  and  influence  of  his  preaching. 

" '  Listen,  O  people,  over  whom  my  heart  yearns,  as  the 
heart  of  a  mother  over  the  children  she  has  travailed  for ! 
God  is  my  witness  that  but  for  your  sakes  I  would  willingly 
live  as  a  turtle  in  the  depths  of  the  forest,  singing  love  to 
my  Beloved,  who  is  mine  and  I  am  his.  For  you  I  toil,  for 
you  I  languish,  for  you  my  nights  are  spent  in  watching, 
and  my  soul  melteth  away  for  very  heaviness.  0  Lord, 
thou  knowest  I  am  willing — 1  am  ready.  Take  me,  stretch 
me  on  thy  cross :  let  the  wicked  who  delight  in  blood,  and 
rob  the  poor,  and  defile  the  temple  of  their  bodies,  and 
harden  themselves  against  thy  mercy — let  them  wag  their 
heads  and  shoot  out  the  lip  at  me ;  let  the  thorns  press 
upon  my  brow,  and  let  my  sweat  be  anguish — I  desire  to  be 
made  like  thee  in  thy  great  love.  But  let  me  see  the  fruit 
of  my  travail — let  this  people  be  saved  !  Let  me  see  them 
clothed  in  purity ;  let  me  hear  their  voices  rise  in  concord 
as  the  voices  of  the  angels ;  let  them  see  no  wisdom  but  in 
thy  eternal  love,  no  beauty  but  in  holiness.      Then  they 

^  The  Romance  of  Preaching,  p.  156.  -  Ibid.  p.  161. 

•  Book  II.  chapter  xxiv.  :  Inside  the  Duomo, 


PRIEST,   MONK,  AND  FRIAR  123 

shall  lead  the  way  before  the  nations,  and  the  people  from 
the  four  winds  shall  follow  them,  and  be  gathered  into  the 
fold  of  the  blessed.  For  it  is  thy  will,  0  God,  that  the 
earth  shall  be  converted  into  thy  law ;  it  is'  thy  will  that 
wickedness  shall  cease  and  love  shall  reign.  Come,  0  blessed 
promise ;  and  behold  1  am  willing — lay  me  on  the  altar ;  let 
my  blood  flow  and  the  fire  consume  me ;  but  let  my  witness 
be  remembered  among  men,  that  iniquity  shall  not  prosper 
for  ever.'  During  the  last  appeal,  Savonarola  had  stretched 
out  his  arms  and  lifted  up  his  eyes  to  heaven ;  his  strong 
voice  had  alternately  trembled  with  emotion  and  risen  again 
in  renewed  energy ;  but  the  passion  with  which  he  offered 
himself  as  a  victim  became  at  last  too  strong  to  allow  of 
further  speech,  and  he  ended  in  a  sob.  Every  changing 
tone,  vibrating  through  the  audience,  shook  them  into 
answering  emotion.  There  were  plenty  among  them  who 
had  very  moderate  faith  in  the  Frate's  prophetic  mission,  and 
who  in  their  cooler  moments  loved  him  little ;  nevertheless, 
they  too  were  carried  along  by  the  great  wave  of  feeling 
which  gathered  its  force  from  sympathies  that  lay  deeper 
than  all  theory.  A  loud  responding  sob  rose  at  once  from 
the  wide  multitude,  while  Savonarola  had  fallen  on  his  knees 
and  buried  his  face  in  his  mantle.  He  felt  in  that  moment 
the  rapture  and  glory  of  martyrdom  without  its  agony."  ^ 

4.  In  France  a  reforming  spirit  was  shown  by  John 
Gerson  (1363-1429),  the  Chancellor  of  the  University  of 
Paris.  While  still  held  fast  by  the  scholastic  and 
allegorising  methods  of  his  time,  in  his  preaching  he  was 
scriptural,  experimental,  and  practical ;  and  without  fear  or 
favour  exposed  the  abuses  of  the  clergy.  In  one  of  his 
sermons  he  speaks  very  wisely  about  the  aim  of  preaching : 

"  Many  believe  that  sermons  should  be  delivered  only 
that  the  people  may  learn  and  know  something  that  they 
did  not  know  before.  Hence  their  scornful  saying,  '  What 
is  preaching  to  me  ?  I  already  know  more  good  than  I  am 
willing  to  do  ! '  But  these  people  are  in  error ;  for  sermons 
are  not  delivered  for  this  reason  only,  that  one  may  learn 
something,  but  also  for  this  reason,  to  move  the  heart  and 

^  Prof.  P.  Villari's  Life  and  Times  of  Scummarola  has  been  translated  into 
English  by  his  wife.  It  contains  selections  from  his  sermons.  M  'Hardy's 
Savonarola  (The  World's  Epoch-Makers)  may  also  be  mentioned. 


124  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

inclination  so  that  they  shall  love,  desire,  and  accomplish 
that  which  is  good.  Therefore  the  apostle  desires  not  so 
much  that  one  should  learn  what  is  in  Christ,  as  that  he 
should  be  like*minded  with  him.  They,  however,  who  attend 
sermons  only  to  learn  something  new  are  like  those  of  whom 
the  apostle  writes,  that  they  are  ever  learning  and  yet  know 
nothing."  ^ 

5.  These  four  men,  with  a  few  others,  such  as  Geiler 
of  Kaisersberg  (1445-1510),  John  Veghe  (d.  1504), 
and  John  Staupitz  (d.  1524),^  held  the  promise  of  a  better 
futui'e  at  a  time  when  preaching  had  fallen  very  low  in  its 
quality,  although  it  had  not  lost  its  influence,  but  was 
used  very  effectively  to  further  the  interests  of  the  Papacy, 
to  commend  the  indulgences  on  sale,  to  assail  all  who 
were  suspected  of  heresy,  and  even  at  times  to  revive 
the  failing  zeal  of  Christendom  against  its  ancient  enemy 
the  Turk.'  (1)  Towards  the  end  of  this  period  some 
attention  was  given  to  homiletic  theory  by  such  writers  as 
Henry  of  Langenstein,  Jerome  Dungersheim,  Ulrich 
Surgant,  and  Nicholas  of  Clemanges.  They  deal  with  the 
exordium  or  introduction,  and  then  the  statement  of  the 
subject,  which  is  attached  either  to  a  text,  given  first  in 
Latin  and  then  in  German,  or  to  the  passage,  generally 
from  the  Gospel,  for  the  day.  In  the  divisions  of  the 
sermon  the  text  does  not  guide,  but  practical  considerations 
connected  with  the  subject.  Even  when  the  text  is  taken 
into  account,  the  allegorical  method  prevents  its  proper 
exposition,  and  the  suggestions  of  the  text  are  seldom 
brought  into  any  organic  unity.* 

(2)  Ker  ^  gives  a  description  of  the  four  kinds  of 
preaching  which  were  common :  (a)  Sermons  were  read 
from  one  of  the  current  collections  such  as  the  Gesta 
Romanorum,  the  Lumen  Animce,  and  the  J)  or  mi  Secure 
("Sleep    at    ease").       (6)  "The    more    learned    preached 

»  Quoted  in  DHPI,  p.  333. 

>  See  HLH,  pp.  80-84  ;  DHPI,  334-335. 

•  HLH,  pp.  78-80. 

*  See  HLH,  pp.  84-85,  and  DHPI,  pp.  304-305. 
»  KHP,  pp.  142-144. 


PRIEST,  MONK,  AND  FRIAR  125 

sermons  of  a  Scholastic  type,  full  of  plays  upon  words  and 
ridiculous  conceits.  Erasmus  gives  an  account  of  one 
which  he  heard  from  an  old  theologian  who  '  looked  so 
wise  that  you  thought  Duns  Scotus  had  come  to  life  again.' 
He  took  the  word  *  Jesus '  as  his  text,  and  showed  what 
wonders  it  contained.  It  is  declined  in  three  cases,  Jesus, 
Jesum,  Jesu ;  wherein  we  have  manifestly  an  image  of  the 
Trinity.  Then  the  first  of  these  ends  in  s,  the  second 
in  m,  the  third  in  u ;  which  is  a  deep  mystery,  summum, 
medium,  ultimum.  Further,  if  Jesus  is  divided  into  two 
equal  portions,  s  is  left  in  the  middle,  which  in  Hebrew 
is  ir,  sin,  and  this  in  the  language  of  the  Scots  (Scotorum 
opinor  lingua)  signifies  peccatum ;  it  is  thus  implied  that 
Jesus  takes  away  the  sin  of  the  world.  The  custom  of 
those  preachers  was  to  have  an  introduction,  which  they 
called  jprceambulum,  as  far  from  the  text  as  possible,  so  as 
to  keep  the  hearers  in  suspense,  and  make  them  say, 
QiLo  nunc  se  proripit  ilk  ?  Where  is  the  man  rushing  to 
now  ? "  (c)  The  monks  especially  dealt  with  legends  of 
the  saints  "  of  the  most  trifling  and  irreverent  kind." 
(d)  "  Others  again  amused  their  hearers  with  ridiculous 
anecdotes,  and  acted  the  part  of  comedians  and  jesters. 
In  this  the  parish  clergy  showed  as  much  skill  as  the  friars. 
Their  extravagances  would  be  almost  incredible,  if  we  had 
not  the  authority  of  grave  and  trustworthy  writers  who 
give  the  names  and  parts  of  the  sermons  of  some  of  the 
preachers.  Maillard,  Menot,  and  Barletta  were  noted  in 
this  department."  In  one  of  the  sermons  of  Barletta  a 
story  is  told,  which  is  current  still,  and  has  been  assigned 
to  an  innumerable  company  of  preachers : 

"A  certain  priest,  in  celebrating  the  mass,  observed  a 
woman  who  seemed  much  touched,  and  freely  wept  as  he 
intoned  the  service.  After  it  was  over  he  spoke  to  the 
woman  and  asked  the  cause  of  her  emotion,  and  she  told  him 
it  was  his  voice,  which  reminded  her  tenderly  of  her  recently 
deceased  ass."  ^ 

It  was  because  the  mediaeval  type  of  religion  had  exhausted 

»  See  DHPI,  pp.  302-304. 


126  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

its  vitality  and  vigour,  that  the  common  preaching  sank  so 
low.  A  few  there  were  who  shone  as  gleams  in  the  dark- 
ness, and  gave  promise  of  the  dawn  of  a  better  day,  in 
which  Christ  the  Head  of  His  Church,  never  forgetful  of 
His  promise  of  continued  presence,  again  found  men  and 
women  hungering  and  thirsting  for  Him,  and  some  chosen 
vessels  in  whom  He  could  again  prove  Himself  the  Bread 
from  Heaven  and  the  Water  of  Life. 


CHAPTER    V. 

REFORMERS  AND  DOGMATISTS. 


At  the  Reformation  a  new  period  in  the  history  of 
preaching  began,  for  new  thought  and  life  seek  an  outlet 
in  the  spoken  word.  Protestantism,  by  its  very  nature, 
gives  a  place  and  a  power  to  public  speech  on  the  concerns 
of  the  soul  which  Roman  Catholicism  does  not.  The  group 
of  great  preachers  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  of  France, 
who  will  be  dealt  with  in  a  subsequent  chapter,  had  felt 
the  quickening  influence  of  Protestantism.  Without  that 
challenge  there  would  not  have  been  any  such  revival  of 
preaching  in  Roman  Catholicism. 

1.  Foremost  among  the  heralds  of  the  recovered  Gospel 
stands  Luther  himself  (1483-1546).i  (1)  Most  unwill- 
ingly, and  only  in  obedience  to  the  head  of  his  monastery, 
he  began  to  preach  first  in  the  dining-hall  of  the  cloister  /?=-/ 
at  Erfurt,  and  then  in  the  small  church  of  the  cloister  at>^' 
Wittenberg.  Some  of  his  earliest  sermons  are  scholastic 
compositions  in  Latin  on  the  mysteries  of  the  creed ;  but 
soon  he  was  preaching  in  German  as  often  as  four  times  a 
day  on  such  practical  subjects  as  the  Ten  Commandments, 
the  Lord's  Prayer,  Repentance,  and  the  True  Life ;  and  the 
freshness  and  frankness  of  his  speech  quickly  attracted 
attention,  commanded  interest,  found  favour  with  most  of 
the  people,  but  also  provoked  the  opposition  of  some  of 
the  ecclesiastics.  The  traditional  forms  were  for  a  time 
retained,  even  when  the  contents  marked  his  breach  with 
the  past.  But  soon  even  the  style  was  changed ;  and  he 
himself  has  described  the  change : 

»  See  HLH,  pp.  86-100  ;  KHP,  pp.  147-167  ;  DHPI,  pp.  384-391. 

127 


128  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"When  I  was  young,  and  especially  before  I  was 
acquainted  with  theology,  I  dealt  largely  in  allegories,  and 
tropes,  and  a  quantity  of  idle  craft :  but  now  I  have  let  all 
that  slip,  and  my  best  craft  is  to  give  the  Scripture,  with 
its  plain  meaning;  for  the  plain  meaning  is  learning  and 
life."i 

From  1516  onwards  he  was  influenced,  both  as  regards 
the  thought  and  the  language  of  his  sermons,  by  his  grow- 
ing familiarity  with  the  German  mystics.  In  his  contro- 
versy with  Rome  his  powers  of  popular  argument  and 
appeal  rapidly  developed.  His  sermons  on  the  Ten  Com- 
mandments and  the  Lord's  Prayer  were  published,  and  by 
their  wide  circulation  extended  his  influence  beyond  the 
borders  of  Germany.  His  sermons  on  a  great  variety  of 
subjects,  yet  all  directed  towards  the  one  purpose  of  pre- 
senting the  truth  of  the  Christian  Gospel  and  of  exposing 
the  errors  of  Eomanism,  were  circulated  from  one  end  of 
the  land  to  the  other,  and  everywhere  moved  the  heart 
and  reached  the  conscience  of  the  multitude.  When  to 
these  sermons  were  added,  in  1520,  the  three  chief  tracts 
of  the  Reformation,^  it  became  clear  that  this  one  man  was 
bringing  about,  by  the  convincing  and  converting  power 
of  his  words,  spoken  and  written,  a  fresh  era  in  the  history 
of  the  Christian  Church. 

"There  had  been  nothing  like  it,"  says  Ker,'  "since 
the  day  of  Pentecost.  On  his  way  to  Worms,  to  meet  the 
Diet,  he  could   not  escape   from  the   crowds.     At  Erfurt, 

»  Quoted  in  note,  KHP,  p.  152. 

•  The  three  treatises — Address  to  the  Christian  Nobility  of  the  German 
Nation  respecting  the  Reformation  of  the  Christian  Estate,  Concerning  Chris- 
tian Liberty,  On  the  Babylonish  Captivity  of  the  Church,  together  with  A 
Short  Catechism,  The  Greater  Catechism,  and  the  Ninety-Five  Theses — have 
been  translated  by  Wace  and  Buchheim,  under  the  title  Luther's  Primary 
Works,  London,  1896. 

Thirtie-Foure  Speciale  cmd  Chosen  Sermons,  Discovering  the  Difference 
between  Faith  and  Workes,  of  Luther's,  were  translated  and  published  in 
London,  1649.  His  Commentary  on  the  Galatians,  in  1644  and  1741  ;  and 
On  Psalms  of  Degrees,  in  1687.  See  Lindsay's  History  of  the  Reformaticm, 
vol.  i.,  and  his  Luther  and  the  German  Reformation. 

8  KHP,  pp.  152-153. 


REFORMERS  AND  DOGMATISTS  129 

where  he  had  commenced  in  the  little  refectory,  the  great 
church  was  so  crowded  that  they  feared  it  would  fall.  At 
Zwickau,  the  market-place  was  thronged  by  25,000  eager 
listeners,  and  Luther  had  to  preach  to  them  from  the 
window."  Amid  all  his  other  labours  "he  continued  to 
preach  all  his  life  long,  though  broken  in  health — in  this, 
too,  like  Knox — and  so  enfeebled  that  he  often  fainted  from 
exhaustion.  But  to  the  end  he  retained  his  wonderful 
power.  The  last  time  he  ascended  the  pulpit  was  on 
February  14th,  1546,  a  few  days  before  he  died." 

(2)  His  one  aim  was  to  present  the  Gospel  in  ex- 
pounding the  Holy  Scriptures.  At  Easter,  1519,  he  began 
a  continuous  exposition  of  the  Four  Gospels  and  the  book 
of  Genesis.  In  1520  he  began  in  Latin,  but  then  con- 
tinued in  German,  a  collection  of  sermons  on  the  portions 
of  Scripture  appointed  to  be  read  in  public  worship,  which 
served  as  an  example  and  help  to  less  gifted  preachers, 
and  as  an  abounding  spring  of  edification  to  the  people. 
He  himself  regarded  this  book,  called  Die  Kirchenpostille, 
as  his  best  work.  Doctrine  drawn  from  the  Scriptures 
was  here  combined  in  a  living,  fruitful  unity  with  practical 
application  to  the  needs  of  believers  and  of  the  Church 
alike.  As  the  time  demanded,  the  great  truths,  for  which 
the  Eeformation  stood  against  Komanism,  were  constantly 
declared ;  but  when  necessary  the  harder  problems  of 
Christian  theology  were  also  faced.  The  appeal  generally, 
however,  was  to  the  heart  and  the  will  rather  than  the 
intellect.  While  he  retained  the  allegorical  method  of 
exposition,  his  sense  of  reality  and  his  intimacy  with  the 
very  core  of  the  truth  of  the  Scriptures,  freed  him  from 
bondage  to  it.  As  regards  form,  there  was  no  endeavour 
to  give  the  sermon  an  organic  unity  ;  but,  as  in  the  ancient 
homily,  the  passage  was  expounded  verse  by  verse.  In  his 
language  nature  spoke  rather  than  art ;  it  was  simple, 
fresh,  abounding,  strong,  and  manly.^  Into  the  details 
of  his  later  activities  as  a  preacher  in  correcting  error 
within  the  Protestant  churches  and  instructing  them  in 
truth  and  duty,  it  is  not  needful  for  our  purpose  now 
1  See  HLH,  pp.  91-96. 


130  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

to  enter.^  Suffice  it  to  say  that  it  was  he  who  put  the 
sermon  in  Protestantism  in  the  place  held  by  the  mass 
in  Koman  Catholicism;  and  made  preaching  the  most 
potent  influence  in  the  churches  of  the  Reformation. 

(3)  The  views  on  preaching  of  so  great  a  master  of 
the  craft  are  full  of  interest.  In  1504  Reuchlin  had 
published  his  treatise  De  Arte  Prcedicandi,  and  in  1534 
Erasmus  his  Ecclesiastes  s.  Goncionator  Evangelicus.  Luther's 
views,  though  more  valuable  than  those  of  either  of  the 
classical  scholars,  were  never  systematically  presented,  but 
must  be  gathered  from  his  letters  and  Table-talk.^  The 
summary  which  Ker  gives  ^  must  be  further  condensed  into 
a  few  sentences.  Placing  preaching  as  the  most  important 
part  of  public  worship,  even  above  the  reading  of  the 
Scriptures,  he  insists  that  it  must  be  rooted  in  and  draw 
its  authority  from  these.  The  subject  of  preaching  is  "  the 
glory  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ " ;  where  that  is  not,  the 
preaching  is  not  only  worthless,  but  even  harmful — a 
betrayal  of  souls.  While  the  sermon  should  be  attached 
to  a  text,  it  should  not  attempt  to  deal  with  all  that  the 
text  may  suggest,  but  should  lay  hold  of  its  main  thought, 
and  stick  to  that.  For  "  fine  introductions  or  brilliant 
perorations "  he  has  no  use.  Instruction  and  impression 
(the  work  of  the  dialecticus  and  rhetor)  are  the  preacher's 
sole  concern,  but  the  proportions  of  these  may  vary. 
Clearness  and  simplicity  of  style  is  what  he  insists  on. 
"While  many  of  his  sermons  have  come  down  to  us,  few,  if 
any,  were  written  out  by  himself ;  and  those  which  were 
reported  by  others,  he  did  not  even  revise.  He  had  no 
care  at  all  for  his  own  Literary  fame.  It  is  probable,  there- 
fore, that  the  form  in  which  we  have  most  of  his  sermons 
does  not  do  him  full  justice.  Imperfect  though  the  trans- 
mission of  much  of  his  preaching  may  be,  of  the  greatness 
of  the  preacher  there  is  more  than  sufficient  proof. 

1  See  HLH,  pp.  96-100. 

2  This,   according  to   KHP,   p.   153,  has  been   done   by  Nebe  in  hi3 
GeschicMe  der  Predigt. 

»  KHP,  pp.  154-158. 


REFORMERS  AND   DOGMATISTS  131 

(4)  One  short  passage  from  a  sermon  on  Gal  4^'  may 
be  quoted,  as  not  only  giving  simply  and  firmly,  but  in  a 
very  brief  compass,  the  substance  of  his  preaching : 

•'  But  here  perhaps  thou  wilt  say :  What  is  needful  to  be 
done  ?  By  what  means  shall  I  become  righteous  and  accept- 
able to  God  ?  How  shall  I  attain  to  this  perfect  justification  ? 
The  Gospel  answers,  teaching  that  it  is  necessary  that  thou 
hear  Christ,  and  repose  thyself  wholly  on  him,  denying  thy- 
seK  and  distrusting  thine  own  strength  ;  by  this  means  thou 
shalt  be  changed  from  Cain  to  Abel,  and  being  thyself 
acceptable,  shalt  offer  acceptable  gifts  to  the  Lord.  It  is 
faith  that  justifies  thee.  Thou  being  endued  therewith,  the 
Lord  remitteth  all  thy  sins  by  the  mediation  of  Christ  his 
Son,  on  whom  this  faith  believeth  and  trusteth.  Moreover, 
he  giveth  unto  such  a  faith  his  Spirit,  which  changes  the 
man  and  makes  him  anew,  giving  him  another  reason  and 
another  will.  Such  a  one  worketh  nothing  but  good  works. 
Wherefore  nothing  is  required  unto  justification  but  to  hear 
Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour  and  to  believe  in  him.  Howbeit 
these  are  not  the  works  of  nature,  but  of  grace.  He,  there- 
fore, that  endeavours  to  attain  to  these  things  by  works, 
shutteth  the  way  to  the  Gospel,  to  faith,  grace,  Christ,  God, 
and  all  things  that  help  unto  salvation.  Again,  nothing  is 
necessary  in  order  to  accomplish  good  works  but  justifica- 
tion ;  and  he  that  hath  attained  it,  performs  good  works  and 
not  any  other."  ^ 

2.  As  might  be  expected,  Luther  exercised  a  potent 
influence  on  the  preaching  of  his  companions  and  disciples 
both  as  regards  the  content  and  the  character  of  the  ser- 
mons. The  Holy  Scriptures  were  expounded  in  accordance 
with  his  evangelical  principles,  and  preaching  in  Protes- 
tantism became  much  more  directly  dependent  on  the 
Scriptures  than  it  had  been  in  Eoman  Catholicism.  Some- 
times a  continuous  exposition  of  a  book  of  the  Bible  was 
given,  e.g.,  by  Brenz  in  his  Latin  homilies  on  Luke  and 
Acts  (1534);  sometimes  selected  passages  only  were  dealt 
with,  as  by  J.  Mathesius  in  his  PostiUa  Prophetica  (preached 
1559,  printed  1588).  The  use  of  Luther's  translation  of 
the  Bible  became  more  general ;  the  allegorical  method  fell 
>  CME  vii.  412. 


132  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

into  disuse,  but  a  minute  typology  made  all  the  Old  Testa- 
ment still  available  for  the  declaration  of  the  GospeL  As 
Protestantism  was  still  engaged  in  opposing  its  truth  to 
Roman  Catholic  error,  the  preaching  was  necessarily  for 
the  most  part  doctrinal,  and  liberal  use  of  this  effective 
weapon  was  made  in  this  warfare.  While  the  common 
people  needed  very  elementary  instruction  from  the  pulpit, 
this  was  not  deemed  sufficient  for  the  children,  and  special 
sermons  were  preached  to  them.  Brenz  probably  com- 
posed the  Nlirnberg  collection  of  sermons  for  children, 
which  appeared  in  1533.  Even  as  regards  the  choice  of 
language,  Luther  was  followed ;  but  the  mantle  of  the 
great  Elijah  did  not  always  fit  the  lesser  Elishas.  Gradu- 
ally the  simple  and  strong  common  speech  of  Luther 
was  displaced,  however,  by  an  ambitious  pulpit  rhetoric  ; 
and  in  the  heat  of  controversy  evangelical  truths  were 
exaggerated  in  a  morally  offensive  way,  against  which 
Urbanus  Rhegius  had  in  1544  to  utter  words  of  serious 
warning. 

3.  A  few  of  the  notable  names  alone  need  to  be  men- 
tioned. Urbanus  Rhegius  combined  power  of  popular 
appeal  with  a  rich  theological  culture ;  Agricola  and 
Linck  showed  the  influence  of  the  mysticism  which  had  so 
deeply  affected  Luther  himself  at  one  stage  of  his  growth 
in  knowledge  and  grace ;  Nicolas  Amsdorf  was  mighty  in 
controversy.  Most  distinguished  of  all,  and  marked  by 
independence,  was  Brenz  (1499-1570),  the  Reformer  of 
Wiirtemberg,  who  was  no  less  concerned  about  the  duties 
of  life  than  the  articles  of  faith.  Among  preachers  who 
reached  the  common  people  were  Veit  Dietrich  of  Niirnberg, 
Bugenhagen  of  Wittenberg,  and  John  Mathesius  (1508- 
1565).  Two  features  on  the  development  of  Lutheran 
preaching  must  be  mentioned.  First  of  all,  the  sermon 
was  brought  into  closer  relation  with  the  worship,  in  which 
attention  was  again  given  to  the  great  days  of  the  Church 
year,  so  that  the  sermon  often  began  with  a  reference  to 
the  occasion.  When  the  mass  for  souls  was  abolished,  the 
funeral   sermon   took  its  place.      In   connection   with   the 


REFORMERS  AND   DOGMATISTS  133 

death  of  a  notable  person  this  tended  to  become  a  pane- 
gyric, going  beyond  the  bounds  of  good  taste.^ 

4.  While  Luther  was  the  more  prominent,  he  was  not  the 
sole  reformer.  Zwingli  (1484-1531),  who  led  an  indepen- 
dent movement,  was  great  as  theologian  and  as  preacher ; 
in  him  more  than  in  Luther  the  Renaissance  brought  its 
gifts  to  the  Eeformation.  Not  by  the  path  of  religious 
experience  as  was  Luther,  but  by  his  studies  of  the  Scrip- 
tures and  the  Fathers  he  was  led  to  his  revolt  against  the 
tyranny  of  Rome  over  the  human  reason  and  conscience. 
From  1518  he  exercised  his  gifts  as  a  preacher  in  the 
interests  of  Reform.  He  expounded  the  Gospel  of  Matthew 
in  order  to  present  the  life  and  work  of  Jesus,  the  Acts  of 
the  Apostles  as  the  picture  both  of  the  spread  of  the 
Gospel  and  what  the  Church  should  be,  the  First  Epistle 
to  Timothy  as  showing  the  true  Christian  way  of  life,  the 
Epistle  to  the  Galatians  as  the  type  of  the  Apostolic 
saving  faith,  and  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  as  the  source 
of  our  knowledge  of  the  mission  and  the  benefits  of  Christ. 
While  these  sermons  have  not  been  preserved,  there  is  con- 
temporary evidence  that  they  exercised  a  very  great 
influence.  The  treatises  he  published  show  that  he 
combined  with  his  humanistic  culture  the  genuine  evan- 
gelical doctrine  and  the  scholarly  exposition  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures.  His  use  of  the  Swiss  dialect  of  German  con- 
fined the  effectiveness  of  his  preaching  to  his  own  country- 
men, while  his  theology  exercised  an  influence  on  Protestant 
thought  generally.^ 

5,  Later  in  date,  but  greater  in  influence,  was  John 
Calvin  (1509-1564).  (1)  A  Frenchman  by  birth,  his 
greatest  work  on  which  his  fame  mainly  rests  was  done  in 
Geneva,  in  French  Switzerland. 

"Calvin,  in  his  intellectual  qualities,"  says  Fisher, 
"differed  widely  from  Zwingli,  but  he  gave  to  the  Swiss 
or  Reformed  theology  its  mature  form,  and  completed  a 
work  which  his  forerunner  had  commenced.     Nevertheless, 

1  See  HLH,  pp.  100-107. 

"See  HLH,  pp.  107-110,  and  DHPI,  pp.  400-415. 


134  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

he  had  little  sympathy  with  the  personal  traits  of  Zwingli, 
and  Dorner  is  right  in  saying  that  there  was,  all  things  con- 
sidered, more  affinity  between  him  and  Luther  and  the 
Lutheran  exposition  of  the  Gospel,  than  there  was  with 
Zwingli  and  the  Zwinglian  theology  taken  as  a  whole.  The 
religious  experience  of  Calvin  corresponded  essentially  to 
that  of  Luther.  Distress  of  conscience  and  a  sense  of  help- 
lessness were  followed  by  peace  of  mind  through  trust  in 
the  wholly  undeserved  grace  of  the  Gospel.' '■ 

The  first  edition  of  the  Institutes  of  Theology  was  pub- 
lished in  Latin  in  1536  as  an  apology  for  the  French 
Protestants.  His  genius  as  a  dogmatic  theologian  there 
displayed  at  once  set  him  beside  Luther  and  Zwingli  as  one 
of  the  leaders  of  the  Eeformation.  In  the  same  year  he 
visited  Geneva,  and  his  help  was  claimed  by  Farel,  the 
leader  of  the  new  movement  there.  His  reluctance  to 
enter  public  life,  due  to  his  love  of  study,  was  at  last  over- 
come by  "  the  terrible  adjuration  "  of  Farel : 

"You  have  no  other  pretext  for  refusing  me  than  the 
attachment  which  you  declare  you  have  for  your  studies. 
But  I  tell  you,  in  the  name  of  God  Almighty,  that  if  you  do 
not  share  with  me  the  holy  work  in  which  i  am  engaged,  he 
will  not  bless  your  plans,  because  you  prefer  your  repose  to 
Jesus  Christ."  ^ 

He  was  not  disobedient  to  the  heavenly  vision ;  and  from 
this  time  on  to  the  end  of  his  life,  with  one  brief  internal, 
he  ruled  the  city,  with  his  pulpit  as  his  throne. 

(2)  In  the  exercise  of  this  ministry,  he  added  to  hia 
fame  as  a  theologian  that  of  an  expositor,  and  combined 
both  with  a  statesman's  mastery  of  practical  affairs.  He 
has  been  described  as  the  orateur  exegdte ;  for  not  only  did 
his  scholarly  exposition  of  the  Scriptures  ever  issue  in 
practical  application,  but  in  both  alike  there  was  a  fervour 
of  feeling  and  force  of  will  which  sought  through  the 
conscience  to  move  to  action.     While  Calvin  no  less  than 

^  History  of  Christian  Doctrine,  p.  298. 

^  Beza's  Life  (old  French  ed.),  p.  22,  quoted  in  DHPI,  p.  445  ;  Calvin's 
Commentaries  were  published  by  the  Calvin  Translation  Society  in  Edin- 
burgh, 1847  r. 


REFORMERS  AND   DOGMATISTS  135 

Luther  found  the  Gospel  of  salvation  in  the  Scriptures,  his 
emphasis  fell  on  God's  demand,  and  Luther's  on  God's 
pity  and  mercy.  More  systematically  even  than  Luther, 
he  set  himself  to  expound  the  Holy  Scriptures,  the  Old 
Testament  no  less  than  the  New,  as  he  maintained  the 
identity  of  the  true  religion  in  both  the  old  and  the  new 
covenant.  Eejecting  the  allegorical  method,  by  means  of 
typology  he  linked  the  two  stages  of  the  divine  revelation. 

(3)  As  he  preached  without  manuscript,  his  sermons 
had  to  be  taken  down  as  delivered. 

"  In  the  Preface  to  the  Sermons  on  Deuteronomy,  the 
deacons  relate  that  the  deceased  Kagueneau  (Eaguenier)  had 
since  1549  devoted  himself  to  the  task  of  reporting  Calvin's 
sermons  '  de  mot  a  mot '  by  the  use  of  specially  invented 
abbreviations,  so  that  only  a  few  words  had  escaped  him. 
He  himself  then  made  a  fair  copy,  and  handed  it  over  to  the 
deacons,  in  order  that  the  word  of  the  great  teacher  might 
build  up  and  strengthen  the  poor  strangers  of  the  reformed 
faith,  the  number  of  whom  in  France  grew  day  by  day.  The 
proceeds  of  the  printing  were  to  be  used  for  the  benefit  of 
the  poor."  ^ 

It  is  in  this  way  a  large  number  of  his  sermons  has  been 
preserved. 

(4)  Home  has  placed  Calvin  between  Savonarola  and 
John  Knox  as  one  of  the  rulers  of  peoples^  and  thus  describes 
Calvin's  preaching  : 

"  Students  of  Calvin's  sermons  and  writings  will  see  tor 
themselves  how  admirably  the  instrument  he  employed  was 
adapted  to  the  kind  of  constructive  work  he  set  out  to  do. 
Members  of  congregations  will  note  with  relief  that  he 
evidently  believed  in  short  sermons ;  indeed,  he  had  no 
patience,  as  he  said,  with  a  prolix  style.  Men  have  called 
him  by  almost  every  depreciatory  epithet,  but,  those  fifty- 
three  octavo  volumes  notwithstanding,  nobody  will  truth- 
fully caU  him  '  wordy.'  Seldom  will  you  read  anywhere 
discourses  with  less  of  illustration  or  ornamentation  which 
are  yet  more  penetrating  and   pertinent.      There   are   no 

1  HLH,  p.  Ill,  note  2. 

'  Tlie  Homance  of  Preaching,  pp.  169-170. 


1/ 


136  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

chasings  on  the  blade  of  his  sword.  It  is  plain,  keen  steel, 
and  with  what  an  edge  !  Calvin's  style  of  address  was,  we 
are  told,  somewhat  slow  and  measured.  For  one  thing,  he 
was  a  martyr  to  asthma,  and  often  breathless  in  the  pulpit 
and  before  the  Council.  It  can  be  said  of  him,  as  it  can  be 
said  of  very  few,  that  he  spoke  literature.  Strong,  stately, 
lucid,  nervous,  his  sentences  carry  you  forward  from  point 
to  point  of  his  argument.  Little  wonder  that  the  French 
school-books  of  to-day  should  point  to  Calvin  as  one  of  the 
supreme  masters  and  even  makers  of  the  French  language, 
and  should  describe  his  style  as  an  '  admirable  instrument  of 
discourse  and  of  affairs.'  It  is  remarkable  that  one  who  was 
so  scholarly  in  all  his  tastes  should  be  the  determined 
champion  of  extempore  preaching.  Indeed,  he  went  as  far 
as  to  declare  that  the  power  of  God  could  only  pour  itself 
forth  in  extempore  speech.  .  .  .  He  never  ceased  to  insist 
that  out  of  the  fulness  of  the  heart  the  mouth  must 
speak." 

6.  Closely  associated  with  Calvin  was  the  Eeformer  of 
Scotland,  John  Knox  (1505-1572),  who  "united  to  the 
statesmanship  of  Calvin  the  fiery  eloquence  of  Savonarola."  ^ 

At  his  grave,  according  to  Calderwood,  the  Regent 
Morton  said,  "  Here  lyeth  a  man  who  in  his  life  never 
feared  the  face  of  man."  Yet  Knox  always  spoke  of 
himself  as  a  coward  by  nature,  and  brave  and  strong  only 
by  grace.  (1)  He,  too,  shrank  from  the  ordeal  of  preach- 
ing, and  was  got  into  the  pulpit  at  St.  Andrews  in  1546 
by  the  solemn  importunity  of  John  Eough,  who  exhorted 
him  "  to  refuse  not  his  holy  vocation  ...  as  you  look  to 
avoid  God's  heavy  displeasure."  Such  was  the  impression 
at  once  made  by  his  preaching  that  his  hearers  said  to  one 
another,  "  Master  George  Wishart  spak  never  so  plainelye, 
and  yet  he  was  brunt ;  even  so  will  he  be."  ^  Not  the 
stake  was  his  lot,  but  a  French  galley  for  nineteen  months. 
It  was  on  his  retm*n  to  Scotland  in  1559  that  he  became 
by  his  word  the  ruler  of  the  Scottish  people,  and,  in  spite 
of  the  opposition  of  the  Court,  established  Protestantism 

*  Home,  op,  cit.,  p.  171. 

"^  Lindsay's  History  of  the  Reformation,  ii.  285.     See  John  Knox,   by 
Taylor  Innes.  "  Famous  Scots  "  Series, 


/ 


REFORMERS   AND  DOGMATISTS  137 

of  the  Calvinistic  type  in  Scotland.  No  reckoning  can  be 
made  of  the  debt  his  country  owes  to  him.  We  may  look 
at  him  and  hear  him  in  the  pulpit  through  the  eyes  and 
ears  of  a  contemporary,  Jaiaes  Melville. 

"  Of  all  the  benefits  I  had  that  year  (1571)  was  the 
coming  of  that  most  notable  prophet  and  apostle  of  our 
nation,  Mister  John  Knox,  to  St.  Andrews.  I  heard  him 
teach  there  the  prophecies  of  Daniel,  that  summer  and 
winter  following.  I  had  my  pen  and  little  book,  and  took 
away  sic  things  as  I  could  comprehend.  In  the  opening  of 
his  text,  he  was  moderate  the  space  of  half  an  hour ;  but 
when  he  entered  to  application,  he  made  me  so  grue  and 
tremble  that  I  could  not  hold  the  pen  to  write."  He  wielded 
this  power  when  in  bodily  weakness,  for  he  had  to  be  helped 
to  the  church  and  even  lifted  into  the  pulpit,  "  where  he  » 
behoved  to  lean  at  his  first  entrie  .  .  .  but  ere  he  was  done  ' 
with  his  sermon  he  was  so  active  and  vigorous  that  he  was 
like  to  ding  (beat)  the  pulpit  into  blads  (pieces),  and  fly 
out  of  it."  1 

He  was  assuredly  an  illustration  of  the  ingenium  perfervidum 
ScotoTum.  That  his  fervour  sometimes  passed  the  bounds 
of  courtesy  and  consideration  may  be  allowed.  It  was  to 
his  disadvantage  in  the  eyes  of  men  that  he  had  to  deal 
sternly,  and  even  harshly,  with  a  young  and  charming 
queen  ;  but  he  shrank  from  no  task,  however  trying,  to 
which  the  interests  of  the  Gospel  summoned  him. 
Savonarola  and  Calvin  each  ruled  a  city ;  Knox  ruled  a 
nation,  and  his  influence  has  been  even  more  permanent 
than  theirs. 

(2)  While  Knox  was  much  engaged  in  controversy,  and 
when  needful  smote  hard  and  spared  not  in  his  preaching, 
he  could  address  himself  to  believers  for  their  comfort  and 
encouragement.  With  what  directness  and  simplicity  he 
indicates  the  motive,  and  with  what  care  and  clearness  he 
arranges  the  matter  of  his  sermon  on  The  First  Temptation 
of  Christ  (Mt  41)  1 

"  The  cause  moving  me  to  treat  of  this  place  of  Scripture 
is,  that  such  as  by  the  inscrutable  providence  of  God  fall 

*  Quoted  by  Home,  oj^.  cit.,  pp.  174-175. 


138  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

into  divers  temptations,  judge  not  themselves  by  reason 
thereof  to  be  less  acceptable  in  God's  presence.  But,  on  the 
contrary,  having  the  way  prepared  to  victory  by  Jesus  Christ, 
they  shall  not  tear  above  measure  the  crafty  assaults  of  that 
subtle  serpent  Satan ;  but  with  joy  and  bold  courage,  having 
such  a  guide  as  here  is  pointed  forth,  such  a  champion,  and 
such  weapons  as  here  are  to  be  found  (if  with  obedience  we 
will  hear  and  unfeigned  faith  believe),  we  may  assure  our- 
selves of  God's  present  favour,  and  of  final  victory,  by  the 
means  of  Him  who,  for  our  safeguard  and  deliverance, 
entered  in  the  battle,  and  triumphed  over  his  adversary,  and 
all  his  raging  fury.  And  that  this  being  heard  and  under- 
stood, may  the  better  be  kept  in  memory,  this  order,  by 
God's  grace,  we  propose  to  observe,  in  treating  the  matter : 
First,  what  this  word  temptation  meaneth,  and  how  it  is 
used  within  the  Scriptures.  Secondly,  who  is  here  tempted, 
and  at  what  time  this  temptation  happened.  Thirdly,  how 
and  by  what  means  He  was  tempted.  Fourthly,  why  He 
should  suffer  these  temptations,  and  what  fruits  ensue  to  us 
from  the  same."  ^ 

(3)  It  is  true  that  this  is  one  of  only  three  written 
sermons  which  have  been  preserved,  and  it  is  possible  that, 
when  he  spoke,  the  disposition  of  his  matter  was  not  always 
as  orderly  as  this.  In  the  conclusion  there  is  an  interest- 
ing reference  to  the  conditions  of  composition : 

"  But  for  bringing  of  the  examples  of  the  Scriptures,  if 
God  permit,  in  the  end  we  shall  speak  more  largely  when  it 
shall  be  treated  why  Christ  permitted  Himself  thus  to  be 
tempted.  Sundry  impediments  now  call  me  from  writing 
in  this  matter,  but,  by  God's  grace,  at  convenient  leisure  I 
purpose  to  finish,  and  to  send  it  to  you.  I  grant  the  matter 
that  proceeds  from  me  is  not  worthy  of  your  pain  and  labour 
to  read  it ;  yet  seeing  it  is  a  testimony  of  my  good  mind 
toward  you,  I  doubt  not  but  you  will  accept  it  in  good  part. 
God,  the  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  grant  unto  you 
to  find  favour  and  mercy  of  the  Judge,  whose  eyes  and 
knowledge  pierce  through  the  secret  cogitations  of  the  heart, 
in  the  day  of  temptation,  which  shall  come  upon  all  flesh, 
according  to  that  mercy  which  you  (illuminated  and  directed 

*  WGS,  i.  173-174.      His   works,  edited  by  Laing,  were  published  in 
2  vols.,  in  Edinburgh,  1846. 


EEFORMERS  AND   DOGMATISTS  139 

by  His  Holy  Spirit)  have  showed  to  the  afflicted.  Now  the 
God  of  all  comfort  and  consolation  confirm  and  strengthen 
you  in  His  power  unto  the  end.     Amen."  ^ 

Even  these  few  sentences  show  another  and  more  attrac- 
tive aspect  of  Knox  than  usually  appears. 

7.  There  were  many  preachers  of  the  Eeformation  in 
other  parts  of  Europe,  as  in  Italy  and  Spain  on  the  one 
hand,  Holland,  Denmark,  Norway  and  Sweden  on  the 
other,  as  well  as  Austria,  Bohemia,  and  Poland ;  and  an 
account  of  some  of  them  may  be  found  in  Dargan's  History 
of  Preaching,  vol.  i.  pp.  451-472  ;  but  to  deal  with  them 
in  detail  would  not  serve  our  present  purpose.  We  shall 
in  the  next  chapter  return  to  the  contrast  in  England  of 
the  preaching  of  Anglican  and  Puritan ;  here  may  be 
mentioned,  however,  one  of  the  pioneers  and  martyrs  of  the 
Eeformation  in  England,  the  most  powerful  and  popular 
preacher  of  the  age,  Hugh  Latimer  (about  1490—1555).^ 
(1)  At  first  a  vehement  opponent  of  the  Eeformation,  he 
was  won  by  the  personal  influence  of  Bilney ;  and  soon 
attracted  attention  as  a  frank  and  bold  champion  of  the 
new  views ;  but  his  ability  and  tact  on  several  occasions 
warded  off  from  him  threatened  ecclesiastical  censure. 
The  persistence  of  his  enemies  brought  him  to  the  Tower 
in  the  closing  months  of  Henry  viii.'s  reign.  During  the 
reign  of  Edward  he  was  free,  and  used  his  freedom  to 
preach  the  truth  he  loved.  On  Mary's  succession  he 
refused  to  seek  safety  in  flight,  as  he  might  have  done,  and 
he  and  Eidley  completed  their  confession  at  the  stake. 
His  last  words  are  familiar  to  all : 

"  Be  of  good  comfort,  Master  Eidley,  and  play  the  man ; 
we  shall  this  day  light  such  a  candle  by  God's  grace  in 
England  as  I  trust  shall  never  be  put  out." 

Although  Latimer  did  not  write  his  sermons,  a  number  of 
them  were  reported  by  Augustine  Bernher,  a  Swiss,  who 

1  WGS,  pp.  200-201. 

^  Sermons  and  Remains  of  Bp.  Latimer,  with  biographical  sketches 
compiled  from  Foxe  and  other  sources,  edited  for  the  Parker  Society  by  the 
Rev.  G.  E.  Corrie,  Cambridge,  1844-1845. 


140  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

acted  as  his  secretary ;  and  these  reports  allow  us  to  judge 
of  his  qualities  as  a  preacher.^ 

(2)  A  characteristic  passage  may  be  quoted  —  his 
description  of  the  busiest  prelate  in  England : 

"  Well,  I  would  all  men  would  look  to  their  duty,  as  God 
hath  called  them,  and  then  we  should  have  a  flourishing 
Christian  Commonwealth.  And  now  I  would  ask  a  strange 
question.  Who  is  the  most  diligentest  bishop  and  prelate 
in  all  England,  and  passeth  all  the  rest  in  doing  his  office  ? 
I  can  tell,  for  I  know  him  who  he  is;  I  know  him  well. 
But  now  methinks  I  see  you  listening  and  hearkening,  that 
I  should  name  him.  There  is  one  that  passeth  all  the 
other,  and  is  the  most  diligent  prelate  and  preacher  in  all 
England.  And  will  ye  know  who  it  is  ?  I  will  tell  you. 
It  is  the  devil.  He  is  the  most  diligent  preacher  of  all 
others.  He  is  never  out  of  his  diocese,  he  is  never  from  his 
cure ;  ye  shall  never  find  him  unoccupied,  he  is  ever  in  his 
parish ;  he  keepeth  residence  at  all  times,  ye  shall  never 
find  him  out  of  the  way ;  call  for  him  when  ye  will,  he  is 
ever  at  home;  the  diligentest  preacher  in  all  the  realm, 
he  is  ever  at  his  plough  ;  no  lording  nor  loitering  may  hinder 
him,  he  is  ever  applying  his  business ;  ye  shall  never  find 
him  idle,  I  warrant  you.  And  his  office  is  to  hinder  religion, 
to  maintain  superstition,  to  set  up  idolatry,  to  teach  all 

1  Home  thus  characterises  Latimer  as  a  preacher.  "The  essential 
Protestant  faith  captured  the  ear  and  the  heart  of  sixteenth-century  London, 
through  the  pithy  pregnant  Saxon  speech  of  Latimer,  with  his  command  of 
laughter  and  tears.  He  presented  the  citizen  in  the  street  with  a  plain 
man's  religion.  He  spoke  it  as  simply,  I  say  it  with  reverence,  as  the 
Saviour  spoke  to  the  peasants  in  the  fields  of  Judaea,  or  the  fishermen  by 
the  Galilean  lake.  He  did  not  so  much  appeal  to  the  theologically  trained 
mind  ;  and  he  certainly  did  not  appeal  to  any  sense  of  ecclesiastical  authority. 
He  appealed  to  common  sense  ;  he  appealed  to  the  instincts  of  the  multitude. 
He  appealed  to  their  love  of  justice  and  of  humanity.  There  never  was  a 
more  human  being  than  Hugh  Latimer.  The  people  well  know  the  men  who 
love  them,  believe  in  them,  and  understand  them.  The  sheep  hear  the  voice 
of  the  true  shepherd.  ,  .  .  Latimer's  preaching  is  oratory  stripped  of  all  that 
ia  meretricious,  and  oratory  that  is  not  sterilised  by  conventionality.  No 
timid,  stilted  pulpiteer,  who  has  never  learned  that  grace  is  more  than 
grammar,  and  that  to  win  your  hearers  you  may  break  every  pulpit  con- 
vention that  was  ever  designed  by  a  sleek  respectability  to  keep  our  volcanic 
Gospel  within  the  bonds  of  decency  and  order,  will  ever  capture  the  soul  of  a 
great  city,  or  speak  with  a  voice  that  will  ring  in  the  hearts  of  a  free  people  " 
{The  Romance  of  Preaching,  pp.  190-191). 


REFORMERS  AND   DOGMATISTS  141 

kind  of  popery.  He  is  as  ready  as  he  can  be  wished  for  to  set 
forth  his  plough,  to  devise  as  many  ways  as  can  be  to  deface 
and  obscure  God's  glory.  Where  the  devil  is  resident,  and 
hath  his  plough  going,  then  away  with  books,  and  up 
with  candles ;  away  with  Bibles,  and  up  with  beads ;  away 
with  the  light  of  the  Gospel,  and  up  with  the  light  of 
candles,  yea  at  noon  days.  Where  the  devil  is  resident,  that 
he  may  prevail,  up  with  all  superstition  and  idolatry, 
censing,  painting  of  images,  candles,  palms,  ashes,  holy 
water,  and  new  service  of  men's  inventing,  as  though  man 
could  invent  a  better  way  to  honour  God  with  than  God 
Himself  hath  appointed.  Down  with  Christ's  cross,  up  with 
Purgatory  pickpurse, — up  with  Popish  Purgatory,  I  mean. 
Away  with  clothing  the  naked,  the  poor  and  impotent,  up 
with  decking  of  images,  and  gay  garnishing  of  stocks  and 
stones ;  up  with  man's  traditions  and  his  laws,  down  with 
God's  will  and  His  most  holy  Word.  Down  with  the  old 
honour  due  unto  God,  and  up  with  the  new  god's  honour. 
Let  all  things  be  done  in  Latin.  .  .  .  And  in  no  wise  they 
must  be  translated  into  English.  Oh  that  our  prelates 
would  be  as  diligent  to  sow  the  corn  of  good  doctrine,  as 
Satan  is  to  sow  cockle  and  darnel  '."  ^ 

8.  While  the  Eeformers  themselves  were  too  much 
concerned  about  the  matter  of  preaching  to  pay  attention 
to  the  form,  the  theory  of  preaching  was  not  in  this 
period  altogether  neglected.  Mention  has  already  been 
made  of  books  by  Reuchlin  and  Erasmus.  (1)  Of 
Erasmus'  Ecdesiastes,  Hering  gives  the  following  brief 
description : 

"  He  has,  after  a  beautiful  estimate,  evangelical  in  tone, 
of  preaching  and  the  calling  of  the  preacher,  sketched  with 
fervour  a  picture  of  the  virtues  of  a  true  preacher,  and  has 
offered,  in  a  homiletic  theory,  which  attaches  itself  to 
ancient  rhetoric  without  denying  the  pecularity  of  Christian 
preaching,  many  fine  observations  and  suggestions  in  order 
at  last,  in  his  teaching  on  the  matter  of  sermons,  with  a 
total  disregard  of  the  achievement  of  the  Reformation  to 
take  up  a  standpoint,  in  which  ecclesiastically  orthodox 
propositions  are  set  side  by  side  with  a  humanistic  moralism."  ^ 

^  LELR,  p.  151 ;  the  Sermons  and  Remains,  pp.  70-71. 
a  HLH,  114. 


142  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

Worth  noting  is  the  summons  which  the  first  part  contains 
to  the  Church  to  send  missionaries  to  heathen,  Jews,  and 
Mohammedans. 

(2)  Luther's  companion,  Melanchthon,  was  also  a 
humanist ;  and  from  the  same  standpoint  as  regards  the 
ancient  rhetoric,  but  with  the  new  appreciation  of  the 
Gospel,  he  delivered  a  course  of  lectures  on  preaching. 
His  own  sermons,  however,  follow  the  homiletic  method 
of  the  other  Reformers.  ffyperiiis{1511—15QQ,  Andrew 
of  Ypres),  a  Eeformed  theologian,  "offered  his  age  a 
comprehensive  Homiletic."  While  recognising  what  dis- 
tinguishes Christian  preaching  from  ancient  rhetoric,  and 
taking  into  account  what  prophets,  apostles,  and  fathers 
have  to  teach,  he  borrows  many  elements  from  the  rhetoric 
and  dialectic  of  the  ancients.  He  gives  special  attention  to 
the  gathering  of  the  material.  His  humanism,  and  especi- 
ally his  admiration  for  Chrysostom,  stand  in  the  way  of  his 
giving  a  homiletic  theory  wholly  in  accord  with  the  new 
evangelical  standpoint,  which  he  aims  at  maintaining. 
His  counsels,  however,  are  thoroughly  practical,  (a)  The 
sermon  is  to  be  adapted  to  the  capacity  of  the  hearers. 
(b)  The  theological  questions  which  excite  curiosity  rather 
than  provide  edification  are  to  be  avoided.  (c)  The 
doctrines  taught  are  to  be  confirmed  from  the  prophetic 
and  apostolic  writings,  (d)  Time,  Place,  and  Hearers  are 
to  be  considered  in  deciding  whether  doctrinal  explanation 
is  suitable  or  not.  (e)  In  confirmation  of  what  is  taught 
only  the  canonical  writings  are  to  be  employed.  (/)  The 
proofs  used  are  to  be  simple  and  direct.  (^)  Preference  is 
to  be  given  to  the  simple  sense,  (h)  Figurative  language 
is  to  be  used  sparingly,  types  and  allegories  very  seldom, 
and  never  for  proof,  (i)  The  mode  of  expression  should 
not  provoke  contradiction.  (J)  When  a  doctrine  is 
taught,  it  should  be  practically  applied  both  in  regard  to 
the  Church  as  a  whole  and  the  individual  conscience.^  Do 
not  these  counsels  remind  us  that  the  book  was  written  for 
an  age  of  doctrinal  controversy,  when  there  was  the  danger 
» HLH,  pp.  115-117. 


REFORMEES   AND   DOGMATISTS  143 

of  preaching  becoming  too  dogmatic  and  polemical  ?  When 
the  fervour  of  the  Spirit  had  departed,  these  two  features 
became  unduly  prominent,  and  preaching  lost  its  living 
force. 

II. 

As  we  have  watched  the  flow  of  the  tide  of  religious 
thought  and  life  at  the  Keformation,  so  must  we  glance,  as 
briefly  as  we  can,  at  the  ebb  in  Germany. 

1.  The  decline  of  the  pulpit  began  even  in  the  second 
generation.  Not  only  did  the  contents  of  the  sermons 
become  more  dogmatic  and  controversial,  but  even  the  form 
became  more  abstract  and  artificial.  Doctrine  displaced 
the  Scriptures;  learning  was  paraded  rather  than  life 
expressed. 

"  Where  are  now,"  asked  Scriver,  "  the  fiery  tongues  and 
the  glowing  hearts  of  the  apostles  ?  Where  is  the  glad 
spirit  of  Luther  ?  Where  are  those  drunken  with  the  love 
of  God,  and  the  heralds  of  the  great  deeds  of  God  ?  "  ^ 

We  should  do  the  age  an  injustice  if  we  assumed  that  the 
men  themselves  were  as  lifeless  as  the  subjects  and  style  of 
their  preaching.  Even  John  Gerhard,  the  great  dogmatic 
theologian  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  is  affected  by  the 
fashion  of  the  hour.  The  hymns  and  prayers  reveal  a 
piety  the  sermons  fail  to  express. 

"  It  is,"  says  Hering,  "  as  if  then  amid  the  severest 
visitation  of  our  fatherland  the  confessing  faith  renewed 
its  original  strength  in  singing  and  praying,  while  this  was 
denied  to  it  for  the  word  of  witness,  for  the  proclamation  in 
the  sermon."  ^ 

2.  Some  illustrations  of  this  general  statement  may  be 
added : 

"  The  preaching  which  resulted,"  says  Ker,  "  became  in 
many  cases  of  a  scholastic  kind,  dry  and  hard  and  formal, 

1  Quoted  in  HLH,  p.  118. 

2  HLH,  p.  118.  In  KHP,  pp.  168-173,  will  be  found  a  brief  and  clear 
account  of  the  conditions,  outward  and  inward,  of  the  age. 


144  THE   CHKISTIAN   PREACHER 

full  of  endless  disputes.  One  well-known  volume  of  sermons, 
for  example,  preached  in  1658  by  Jacob  Andrea  of  Esslingen, 
is  divided  into  four  parts,  for  the  four  quarters  of  the  year ; 
the  first  against  the  Papists,  the  second  against  the 
Zwinglians,  the  third  against  the  Schwenkfeldians,  who 
were  the  mystics  and  perfectionists  of  that  time,  and  the 
fourth  against  the  Anabaptists.  When  such  heresies  had 
all  been  dealt  with,  preachers  turned  to  the  early  Christian 
age,  and  in  their  sermons  the  Patripassians,  the  Nestorians, 
and  the  Valentiuians  rose  and  fought  again,  like  the  dead  at 
Chalons."  ^ 

The  homiletic  theory  of  the  period  did  not  correct,  but 
increased,  the  evil.  Hyperius,  who  has  already  been 
mentioned,  failed  to  exercise  a  lasting  influence,  and  found 
no  worthy  successor.      Andreas  Pancratius 

"  receives  the  credit  of  being  the  inventor  of  the  synthetic 
mode  of  preaching,  which  was  called  after  him,  the 
Pancratian.  It  was,  however,  in  use  long  before,  as  it  could 
not  but  be,  only  he  brought  it  more  fully  into  notice.  .  .  . 
Now  there  were  found  out  endless  methods,  which  were 
discussed  in  special  treatises.  As  many  as  twenty-five  are 
reckoned  up  in  the  scholastic  style — methodus  paraphrastica 
simplex,  methodus  'paraphrastica  mixta,  methodus  zetetica,  etc. 
There  were  also  methods  named  after  the  different  univer- 
sities— the  Witteriberg  method,  the  Jena  method  ;  and  methods 
were  imported  from  other  countries — the  English  method, 
the  Dutch  method ;  books  being  published  with  these  titles 
as  recommendations.  Exact  mles  were  laid  down  for  the 
treatment  of  texts;  sometimes  three  introductions,  special, 
inore  special,  most  special,  were  recommended,  with  five 
different  kinds  of  applications.  Nature  was  sacrificed  to 
art ;  texts  were  stretched  out  on  the  rack,  and  dealt  with, 
not  according  to  their  contents  or  the  wants  of  the  people, 
but  according  to  the  method  of  some  particular  homilete 
or  university.  The  formalism  of  the  dogmatic  theology  of 
the  time  thus  found  its  way  into  the  manner  of  preaching, 
and  the  attempt  to  improve  sermons  by  such  means  only 
made  them  worse."  ^ 

1  KHP,  p.  173. 

-  KHP,  pp.  175-176.  This  quotation  is  given  so  fully,  as  the  warning  it 
conveys  is  so  necessary  to  preachers  at  all  times,  and  weight  is  added  to  it 
because  the  words  are  those  of  a  great  preacher. 


REFORMERS   AND    DOGMATISTS  145 

Some  preachers  felt  the  weariness  and  unprofitableness  of 
this  kind  of  preaching,  and  tried  to  gain  freshness  for  their 
preaching  by  seeking  subjects  other  than  Scripture  texts  or 
doctrines.  Sermons  were  prea-ched  on  hymns,  or  emblems, 
such  as  a  rose,  a  lily,  or  honey,  which  were  dealt  with  by 
a  fanciful  allegorical  method ;  or  proverbs,  from  which 
practical  applications  to  common  life  were  made. 

"  There  were  sermons  on  the  dressing  of  the  hair,  tobacco 
smoking,  and  so  forth.  Scarcely  one  of  the  subjects  chosen 
by  our  sensational  advertising  preachers  had  not  its  proto- 
type more  than  two  hundred  yeai^s  ago  in  Germany."  ^ 

Thus,  when  men  had  lost  the  skill  to  draw  from  the 
fountain  of  living  waters,  did  they  hew  out  for  themselves 
cisterns,  broken  cisterns,  that  can  hold  no  water.^ 

3.  Luther  himself  had  been  much  influenced  by  German 
mysticism,  and  the  leaven  remained  in  the  religious  thought 
and  life  of  the  country.  The  Lutheran  mysticism,  however, 
differed  from  the  Mediaeval,  in  that  evangelical  verities 
were  recognised  and  expressed  in  it.  It  exercised  a  whole- 
some influence  on  preaching,  and  was  a  preparation  for  the 
movement  of  pietism.  The  peril  of  an  exaggerated  sub- 
jecti\'ism  was  seen  in  Valentin  Weigel  (died  1588),  for 
whom  the  significance  of  Christmas  and  Easter  alike  was 
the  rebirth  of  the  soul,  and  the  inner  experiences  of  the 
believer  seemed  more  important  than  the  outer  revelation 
of  God  in  Christ.  Evangelical  doctrine  was  quickened  by 
mystical  experience  in  John  Arndt  (1555-1621). 

"  For  preaching  and  popular  edification,"  says  Ker,  *•  he 
is  the  foremost  figure  between  Luther  and  Spener,  and  has, 
more  than  any  other  of  that  time,  the  characteristics  of  our 
Puritans — of  men  Kke  Baxter  and  Rutherford  and  Bunyan, 
though  without  Bunyan's  genius."  ^ 

His  principal  book  is  Das  wahre  Christentum  ("  The  true 
Christianity  "). 

"  His  avowed  aim  in  writing  it  was  (1)  to  draw  the 
minds  of  students  and  preachers  away  from  combative  and 

1  KHP,  p.  177.  '  Jer  2".  3  KHP,  p.  178. 


146  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

scholastic  theology ;  (2)  to  lead  good  Christians  from  a 
formal  to  a  fruit-bearing  faith  ;  (3)  to  bring  them  from  the 
mere  science  and  theory  of  Christianity  to  the  enjoyment 
and  the  practice  of  it;  (4)  to  show  the  meaning  of  a 
Christian  life  as  indicated  by  the  apostle's  words,  '  I  live ; 
yet  not  I,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me.'  "  ^ 

Although  influenced  by  Arndt,  Valerius  Herberger  (1562— 
1627)  differs  from  him  in  mode  of  preaching.  He 
illustrates  a  fashion  of  the  hour  in  revelling  in  imagery, 
regardless  of  good  taste.  In  contrast  to  him,  Joachim 
Liitkemann  (1608—1655)  was  free  of  all  such  trifling,  and 
preached  forcefully ;  even  for  some  of  his  hearers  his 
earnestness  seemed  harshness.  A  sharp  critic  of  the 
conditions  in  the  Church  in  the  interests  of  a  more  living 
and  inward  piety  was  Henry  Mliller  (1631-1675),  who, 
however,  in  his  homiletic  form  favoured  the  current 
artificiality.  A  man  of  independent,  original  mind,  belong- 
ing to  no  party,  keen  in  observation,  bold  in  utterance, 
endowed  with  the  gifts  of  humour  and  sarcasm,  and  using 
all  his  powers  for  the  betterment  of  the  morals  of  the 
people,  was  Balthasar  Schupp  (1610-1661).^  These 
names  are  evidence  that  even  in  this  period  of  barren 
scholasticism  and  arid  polemics  the  pulpit  of  Germany 
could  still  claim  some  living  witnesses  of  Christian  truth 
and  grace ;  and  these  continued  the  evangelical  succession 
until  the  religious  revival  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
which  is  known  to  us  as  German  pietism. 

"For  a  whole  century,"  says  Ker,  "after  the  death  of 
the  leaders  of  the  Reformation,  Germany  was  in  a  state  of 
spiritual  hardness  and  coldness  of  the  most  distressing  kind, 
.  .  .  Yet  a  genuine  revival  came  in  the  course  of  the  seven- 
teenth century."  Thus  the  period  "  may  teach  us  never  to 
despair  of  the  revival  of  religion  in  any  country."  ^ 

^  KHP,  pp.  178-179.  *  HLH,  pp.  118-131.  »  KHP,  p.  180. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

THE  ANGLICAN  AND  THE  PURITAN,  THE 
CHURCHMAN  AND  THE  NONCONFORMIST,  THE 
EVANGELICAL  AND  THE  MODERATE. 


1.  In  his  letter  to  Somerset,  Calvin  said  of  the  Church : 

"  There  is  too  little  of  living  'preaching  in  your  Kingdom. 
.  .  .  You  fear  that  levity  and  foolish  imaginations  might 
be  the  consequence  of  the  introduction  of  a  new  system. 
But  all  this  must  yield  to  the  command  of  Christ  which 
orders  the  preachifig  of  the  Gospel."  ^ 

Moderate  reform  under  the  guidance  and  control  of  the 
civil  power — that  was  the  policy  in  England ;  individual 
enthusiasm  must  be  restrained  and  repressed.  At  the 
beginning  of  Elizabeth's  reign  preaching  was  even  for  a 
time  forbidden,  and  for  a  long  time  there  was  a  lack  of 
preachers.  Homilies  were  provided  and  appointed  to  be 
read.  The  first  collection  of  these  was  issued  in  the 
reign  of  Edward  for  "  the  staying  of  such  errors  as  were 
then  sparkled  among  the  people."  Among  the  contributors 
were  Cranmer,  Eidley,  Latimer,  and  Butzer.  The  second 
collection  appeared  under  Elizabeth  in  1562.  These 
homilies  were  distinctly  Protestant  in  content  and  tone, 
affirming  both  the  formal  and  the  material  principle  of  the 
Reformation,  the  authority  of  the  Scriptures  and  the  doctrine 
of  justification  by  faith.  While  there  were  good  and  godly, 
serious  and  earnest  men  among  the  leaders  of  the  move- 
ment, yet  there  was  lacking  a  personality  great  enough  to 
control  and  direct  by  moral  and  religious  influence  instead 
of  State  regulation.^ 

*  Quoted  by  Home,  op.  cit.,  p.  170.  *  See  DHPI,  pp.  473-481. 

U7 


148  THE  CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

2.  The  attempts  by  Queen  Elizabeth  to  repress  free 
speech  in  the  pulpit,  and  to  limit  preaching  to  the  reading 
of  homilies,  evoked  a  protest  from  Archbishop  Grindal  in 
1577,  an  offence  for  which  he  was  set  aside  from  the 
exercise  of  his  office.  His  views  on  freely  spoken  sermons 
and  read  homilies  are  worth  remembering. 

"  Now,  when  it  is  thought  that  the  reading  of  the  godly 
Homilies,  set  forth  by  public  authority,  may  suffice,  I  con- 
tinue of  the  same  mind  I  was  when  I  attended  last  upon 
your  Majesty.  The  reading  of  Homilies  hath  his  commodity, 
but  is  nothing  comparable  to  the  office  of  preaching.  The 
godly  preacher  is  termed  in  the  Gospel  Jidelis  servus  et 
prudens  qui  novit  famulitio  Domini  cibum  deviensum  dare 
in  tempore;  who  can  apply  his  speech  according  to  the 
diversity  of  times,  places  and  hearers,  which  cannot  be  done 
in  Homilies;  exhortations,  reprehensions  and  persuasions 
are  uttered  with  more  affection,  to  the  moving  of  the  hearers, 
in  Sermons  than  in  Homilies.  Besides  Homilies  were  devised 
by  the  godly  bishops  in  your  brother's  time,  only  to  supply 
necessity,  for  want  of  preachers,  and  are  by  the  statute  not 
to  be  preferred,  but  to  give  place  to  Sermons,  whensoever 
they  may  be  had;  and  were  never  thought  in  themselves 
alone  to  contain  sufficient  instruction  for  the  Church  of 
England.  If  every  flock  might  have  a  preaching  pastor, 
which  is  rather  to  be  wished  than  hoped  for,  then  were 
reading  of  Homilies  altogether  unnecessary."  ^ 

3.  Hugh  Latimer  has  been  dealt  with  in  the  preceding 
chapter,  as  he  comes  before  the  division  of  English 
Protestantism  into  the  Anglican  and  Puritan  type,  and  has 
a  claim  to  be  placed  alongside  of  the  notable  preachers 
of  the  Keformation,  even  although  his  influence  was  not 
so  great  or  so  enduring  as  theirs.  Kichard  Hooker 
(1553-1600)  may  be  takeil  as  a  typical  Anglican.  The 
controversy  in  which  he  was  involved  against  his  will  with 
his  colleague,  Walter  Travers,  at  the  Temple,  of  which  in 
1585  he  became  Master,  led  to  the  writing  of  the  classic 
apology  for  Anglicanism,  The  Laws  of  Ecclesiastical  Polity. 
Characteristic  of  his  tolerant,  conciliatory  spirit  and  his 
reverence   for   his   spiritual   ancestry  is   his   plea   for   the 

1  LELR,  pp.  180-181. 


THE   ANGLICAN   AND   THE    PURITAN  149 

kindly  judgment  of  Eonian  Catholics  in  his  sermon,  entitled 
"  A  Learned  Discourse  of  Justification,  Works,  and  How 
the  Foundation  of  Faith  is  overthrown."  ^ 

"  I  have  proved  heretofore,  that  although  the  Church  of 
Rome  hath  played  the  harlot  worse  than  ever  did  Israel,  yet 
are  they  not,  as  now  the  synagogue  of  the  Jews,  which 
plainly  denieth  Christ  Jesus,  quite  and  clean  excluded  from 
the  new  covenant.  But  as  Samaria  compared  with  Jerusalem 
is  termed  Aholah,  a  church  or  tabernacle  of  her  own ;  con- 
trariwise, Jerusalem  Aholihah,  the  resting  place  of  the  Lord ; 
so,  whatsoever  we  term  the  Church  of  Eome,  when  we  com- 
pare her  to  reformed  churches,  still  we  put  a  difference,  as 
then  between  Babylon  and  Samaria,  so  now  between  Rome 
and  heathenish  assemblies.  Which  opinion  I  must  and  will 
recall;  I  must  grant,  and  will,  that  the  Church  of  Rome, 
together  with  all  her  children,  is  clean  excluded ;  there  is  no 
difference  in  the  world  between  our  fathers  and  Saracens, 
Turks  or  Painims  if  they  did  directly  deny  Christ  crucified 
for  the  salvation  of  the  world.  But  how  many  millions  of 
them  are  known  so  to  have  ended  their  mortal  lives,  that 
the  drawing  of  their  breath  hath  ceased  with  the  uttering  of 
this  faith,  '  Christ,  my  Saviour,  my  Redeemer  Jesus.'  And 
shall  we  say,  that  such  did  not  hold  the  foundation  of 
Christian  faith  ?  .  .  .  Forasmuch,  therefore,  as  it  may  be 
said  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  she  hath  yet '  a  little  strength,' 
she  doth  not  directly  deny  the  foundation  of  Christianity. 
I  may,  I  trust  without  offence,  persuade  myself,  that 
thousands  of  our  fathers  in  former  times,  living  and 
dying  within  her  walls,  have  found  mercy  at  the  hands  of 
God." 

This  charity  does  not,  however,  loosen  his  hold  on  the 
Reformation  principle  of  justification  by  faith  alone. 

"  Indeed  many  of  them  in  former  times,  as  their  books 
and  writings  do  yet  show,  held  the  foundation,  to  wit,  salva- 
tion by  Christ  alone,  and  therefore  might  be  saved.  For  God 
hath  always  had  a  Church  among  them,  which  firmly  kept 
his  saving  truth.  As  for  such  as  hold  with  the  Church  of 
Rome,  that  we  cannot  be  saved  by  Christ  alone  without 
works;  they  do  not  only  by  a  circle  of  consequences,  but 

^  This  was  preached  in  the  first  year  of  Hooker's  Mastership  of  the  Temple. 


150  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHEB 

directly,  deny  the  foundation  of  faith ;  they  hold  it  not,  no 
not  80  much  as  by  a  slender  thread."  ^ 

4.  Very  soon  the  influence  of  the  Renaissance  as  well 
as  the  Reformation  appeared  in  the  preaching  of  the 
Anglican  pulpit. 

(1)  "  The  sermons  of  Andrewes  (1555-1626),"  says  Dar- 
gan,  "are  at  times  artificial  and  stilted  in  tone,  and  often  over- 
loaded with  learning  and  Latin  quotations,  not  free  from  the 
whimsical  fancies  of  the  age,  but  weighty  in  thought,  ex- 
haustive in  treatment,  and  much  occupied  with  careful 
exposition  of  Scripture;  but  his  exposition  is  sometimes 
vitiated,  both  by  polemical  bias  and  the  play  of  fancy."  ^ 

John  Donne  (1573-1631)  enjoyed  great  popularity  as 
a  preacher,  but  his  sermons  also  are  marred  "  by  the  affec- 
tations and  pedantry  and  straining  for  effect  which  were 
common  to  the  age."  ^  An  Anglican  with  Puritan  sym- 
pathies was  Joseph  Hall  (1574—1656),  who  was  counted 
"  in  character,  learning  and  eloquence  "  ^  one  of  the  greatest 
preachers  of  his  age.  We  must  pass  over  other  noted 
preachers,  to  deal  more  fully  with  one,  Jeremy  Taylor 
(1613—1667),  who  holds  a  foremost  place  in  the  devotional 
literature  not  only  of  his  own  Church,  but  of  his  nation, 
and  who  also  deserves  remembrance  as  a  preacher. 
In  his  Liberty  of  Prophesying  (1647)  he  tried  to  recon- 
cile the  contending  factions  in  the  Church  on  the  basis, 
not  of  the  Bible  itself,  but  of  the  Apostles'  Creed,  and 
pleaded  for  toleration  while  recognising  the  authority  of 
the  State.  His  Holy  Living  (1650)  and  Holy  Dying 
(1651)  are  recognised  as  religious  classics.  As  a  preacher, 
Hering  takes  him  as  the  illustration  of  the  change  which 
came  over  English  preaching  in  the  seventeenth  century. 
He  is  "  a  brilliant  author-preacher,  who  is  as  prodigal  with 
his   wealth   of  anecdote   '  as   an  Asiatic   queen   with   her 

'  Everyman's  Library.  Hooker's  Laws  of  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  i.  pp.  32, 
34,  35. 

*  DHP  ii.  p.  150.  Simpson,  however,  speaks  very  highly  of  Andrewes, 
Preachers  and  Teachers,  pp.  116-120. 

8  DHP  ii.  p.  151.  *  DHP  ii.  p.  153. 


THE   ANGLICAN  AND   THE   PURITAN  151 

pearls.'  In  contrast  to  Latimer,  who  grips  life,  he  makes 
full  use  of  the  treasures  of  the  classics,  and  his  speech  also 
is  of  that  exalted  style,  which  is  more  suitable  for  an 
audience  of  patricians  than  for  a  popular  congrega- 
tion." i 

(2)  A  passage  on  Married  Love  from  one  of  two 
sermons  on  "  The  Marriage  King,"  in  which  he  gives  wise 
counsel  to  the  married,  will  serve  to  illustrate  his  style : 

"  It  contains  in  it  all  sweetness,  and  all  society,  and  all 
felicity,  and  all  prudence,  and  all  wisdom.  For  there  is 
nothing  can  please  a  man  without  love ;  and  if  a  man  be 
weary  of  the  wise  discourses  of  the  Apostles,  and  of  the 
innocency  of  an  even  and  a  private  fortune,  or  hates  peace 
or  a  fruitful  year,  he  hath  reaped  thorns  and  thistles  from 
the  choicest  flowers  of  Paradise ;  for  nothing  can  sweeten 
felicity  itself  but  love.  .  .  .  No  man  can  tell  but  he  who 
loves  his  children  how  many  delicious  accents  make  a  man's 
heart  dance  in  the  pretty  conversation  of  these  dear  pledges ; 
their  childishness,  their  stammering,  their  little  angers,  their 
innocence,  their  imperfections,  their  necessities  are  so  many 
little  emanations  of  joy  and  comfort  to  him  that  delights 
in  their  persons  and  society ;  but  he  that  loves  not  his  wife 
and  children  feeds  a  lioness  at  home,  and  broods  a  nest  of 
sorrows,  and  blessing  itself  cannot  make  him  happy :  so  that 
all  the  commandments  of  God  enjoining  a  man  to  love  his 
wife  are  nothing  but  so  many  necessities  and  capacities  of 
joy.  She  that  is  loved  is  safe,  and  he  that  loves  is  joyful. 
Love  is  a  union  of  all  things  excellent;  it  contains  in  it 
proportion,  and  satisfaction,  and  rest,  and  confidence;  and 
I  wish  this  were  so  much  proceeded  in  that  the  heathens 
themselves  could  not  go  beyond  us  in  this  virtue  and  in  its 
proper  and  its  appendant  happiness.  Tiberius  Gracchus 
chose  to  die  for  the  safety  of  his  wife ;  and  yet  methinks  to 
a  Christian  to  do  so  should  be  no  hard  thing;  for  many 
servants  will  die  for  their  masters,  and  many  gentlemen 
will  die  for  their  friend ;  but  the  examples  are  not  so  many 
of  those  that  are  ready  to  do  it  for  their  dearest  relatives, 
and  yet  some  there  have  been.  Baptista  Fregosa  tells  of  a 
Neapolitan  that  gave  himself  a  slave  to  the  Moors  that  he 
might  follow  his  wife ;  and  Dominicus  Catalusius,  the  Prince 

1  HLH  135.      See  DPH  ii.  pp.  155-159,  and  Simpson,   op.   eit.,   pp. 
131-132. 


152  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

of  Lesbos,  kept  company  with  his  lady  when  she  was  a  leper ; 
and  these  are  greater  things  than  to  die."  ^ 

II. 

1.  We  are  fortunate  in  having  a  volume  on  Puritan 
Preaching  in  England  from  the  pen  of  the  biographer  of 
John  Bunyan,  the  Eev.  Dr.  John  Brown.  He  quotes  from 
a  contemporary  a  description  of  the  manner  of  preachings 
of  one  William  Bourne,  a  preacher  in  Manchester  early  in 
the  seventeenth  century. 

"  He  seldom  varied  the  manner  of  his  preaching,  which 
after  explication  of  the  text  was  doctrine,  proof  of  it  from 
Scripture,  by  reasoning  and  answering  more  and  more 
objections ;  and  then  the  uses,  first,  of  information,  secondly 
of  confutation  of  Popery,  thirdly  of  reprehension,  fourthly  of 
examination,  fifthly  of  exhortation,  and  lastly  of  consolation."  ^ 

This  suggests  a  very  dreary  performance.  In  contrast  may 
be  placed  two  short  passages  of  "  that  eloquent  divine  of 
famous  memory,  Thomas  Playfere"  (about  1561-1609), 

"  who  was  Lady  Margaret  Professor  of  Divinity  at  Cambridge 
in  Queen  Elizabeth's  time,  and  afterwards  Court  preacher  to 
King  James.  In  a  sermon  entitled  '  The  Pathway  to  Per- 
fection,' based  on  Philippians  iii.  14,  he  begins  by  saying  that 
as  Solomon  went  up  six  steps  to  come  to  his  great  throne  of 
ivory,  so  must  we  ascend  six  degrees  to  come  to  this  high 
top  of  perfection.  He  therefore  proceeds  to  divide  his  text 
into  six  parts.  On  that  part  which  deals  with  the  Apostle's 
forgetting  those  things  which  are  behind,  Playfere  says: 
'  He  that  remembers  his  virtues  has  no  virtues  to  remember, 
seeing  he  wants  humility,  which  is  the  mother  virtue  of  all 
virtues.  For  this  is  the  difference  between  the  godly  and 
the  wicked ;  both  remember  virtues,  but  the  godly  remem- 
ber other  men's  virtues,  the  wicked  remember  their  own. 
Wherefore  though  thou  have  conquered  kingdoms  yet  crake 
not  of  it  as  Sennacherib  did ;  though  thou  hast  built  Babel 
yet  brag  not  of  it  as  Nebuchadnezzar  did ;  though  thou  hast 
rich  treasures  yet  show  them  not  as  Hezekiah  did ;  though 
thou  hast  slain  a  thousand  Philistines  yet  glory  not  in  it 
as  Samson  did;    though  thou  give  alms  yet  blow  not  a 

1  LELR,  p.  288.  2  puritan  Preaching  in  England,  p.  60. 


THE  ANGLICAN  AND  THE   PURITAN  153 

trumpet ;  though  thou  fast  twice  a  week  yet  make  no  words 
of  it  (remember  it  not,  but)  '  Forget  that  which  is  behind.' "  ^ 

This  extract  suggests  artificiality ;  but  genuine  feeling, 
in  spite  of  some  rhetorical  extravagance,  breaks  out  in 
a  sermon  on  "  Heart's  Delight,"  on  the  text  "  Delight  thy- 
self in  the  Lord." 

"  Nay,  I  cannot  hold  my  heart  for  my  joy ;  yea,  I  cannot 
hold  my  joy  for  my  heart ;  to  think  that  He  which  is  my 
Lord  is  become  my  Father,  and  so  that  He  which  was 
offended  with  me  for  my  sin's  sake,  is  now  reconciled  to 
me  for  His  Son's  sake.  To  think  that  the  High  Majesty 
of  God  will  one  day  raise  me  out  of  the  dust,  and  so  that  I 
who  am  now.  a  poor  worm  upon  earth  shall  hereafter  be 
a  glorious  saint  in  heaven.  This,  this  makes  me  delight 
myself  in  the  Lord,  saying,  O  Thou  that  art  the  delight  of 
my  delight,  the  life  of  my  life,  soul  of  my  soul,  I  delight 
myself  in  Thee,  I  live  only  for  Thee,  I  offer  myself  unto 
Thee,  wholly  to  Thee  wholly,  one  to  Thee  one,  only  to  Thee 
only.  For  suppose  now,  as  St.  John  speaketh,  the  whole 
world  was  full  of  books,  and  all  the  creatures  in  the  world 
were  writers,  and  all  the  grass  piles  upon  the  earth  were 
pens,  and  all  the  waters  in  the  sea  were  ink :  yet  I  assure 
you  faithfully  all  these  books,  all  these  writers,  all  these 
pens,  all  this  ink  would  not  be  sufficient  to  describe  the 
very  least  part,  either  of  the  goodness  of  the  Lord  in  himself, 
or  of  the  loving-kindness  of  the  Lord  towards  thee."  ^ 

2.  Nearly  all  the  makers  of  the  Puritan  movement 
were  university  men,  and  most  of  them  Cambridge  men. 
For  nearly  fifty  years  Laurence  Chaderton  (about  1536— 
1640)  preached  in  Cambridge  as  afternoon  lecturer  at 
St.  Clement's  Church ;  and  when  he  thought  of  resigning, 
on  account  of  his  age,  more  than  forty  Christian  ministers 
wrote  asking  him  to  carry  on  his  work,  as  each  of  them 
had  been  brought  to  Christ  by  his  ministry.  Dr.  Brown 
describes  him  as  "an  almost  ideal  preacher."^  Through 
his  own  brother-in-law,  Ezekiel  Culverwell,  his  influence 
reached  a  youth  of  eighteen,  "  John  Winthrop,  afterwards 

^  Puritan  Preaching  in  England,  pp.  61,  62. 

'  Quoted  by  Brown,  pp.  62,  63.  ^  P.  69. 


154  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

better  known  to  the  world  as  Governor  Winthrop."  ^ 
Through  William  Perkins  (died  1602),  "a  Puritan  preacher 
of  more  than  ordinary  spiritual  power,"  he  affected  the  life 
both  of  John  Cotton,  who  did  a  great  work  in  Boston, 
New  England,  and  of  John  Eobinson  (about  1576-1625), 
whose  name  and  fame  are  linked  with  the  Pilgrim  Fathers.^ 
These  illustrations  show  how  expansive  like  the 
mustard  seed,  and  pervasive  like  the  leaven,  the  preacher's 
influence  may  be.  He  cannot  measure  the  greatness  of 
his  own  work,  and  in  few  cases  can  it  be  traced.  William 
Perkins  gave  a  series  of  addresses  to  divinity  students  and 
preachers  in  Cambridge  on  "  The  Calling  of  the  Ministry, 
describing  the  Duties  and  Dignities  of  that  Calling,"  of 
which  Dr.  Brown  gives  a  summary^  which  cannot  here  be 
reproduced,  but  one  short  passage  may  be  quoted,  as  it 
describes  the  preacher's  twofold  function  as  prophet  and 
as  priest. 

"Every  true  minister  is  a  double  interpreter — God's 
interpreter  to  the  people  by  preaching  to  them  from  God, 
and  the  people's  interpreter  to  God,  laying  open  their  wants, 
confessing  their  sins,  craving  pardon  and  forgiveness  for, 
and  in  their  names  giving  thanks  for  mercies  received,  thus 
so  offering  up  their  spiritual  sacrifices  to  God."* 

For  this  task  he  needs  the  tongue  of  the  learned,  and 
he  can  have  this  tongue  only  as  he  has  human  learning 
and  divine  knowledge,  as  well  as  being  inwardly  taught 
by  the  Holy  Ghost.  One  condition  of  this  equipment  is 
that  he  labour  for  sanctity,  and  holiness  of  life.  Himself 
saved  and  sanctified,  he  must  preach  for  the  salvation  and 
sanctification  of  others.  Perkins  then  shows  how  the 
prophet  is  made  by  a  discussion  of  the  vision  of  Isaiah, 
offering  an  exposition  that  is  full  of  insight  and  suggestion. 

1  P.  70. 

2  P.  71.  Home  devotes  one  of  his  lectures  to  "Founders  of  Freedom  : 
John  Robinson  and  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  "  ;  and  seeks  to  show  that  in  the 
preaching  of  Robinson  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  found  instruction  and  inspiration 
for  their  enterprise,  quoting  as  his  warrant  Seeluy's  saying,  "Religion  alone 
can  turn  emigration  into  Exodus"  {The  Romaiiee  of  PreoA^hing,  pp.  198-199). 

»  Pp.  73-83.  *  P.  74. 


THE  ANGLICAN  AND  THE   PURITAN  155 

3.  One  of  the  greatest  preachers  in  the  period  of  the 
greatest  literary  luxuriance  and  brilliance  in  the  history  of 
England,  and  reproducing  its  characteristics,  was  Henry 
Smith  (1550-1593),  who  was  spoken  of  as  the  silver- 
tongued,  "  aud  therefore,  as  Thomas  Fuller  says,  only  one 
metal  below  Chrysostom,  the  golden-mouthed,  himself." 
As  lecturer  at  St.  Clement  Danes,  London,  from  1587,  he 
quickly  gained  the  fame  of  "  prime  preacher  of  the  nation." 
Free  of  the  artificiality  in  form,  and  the  dogmatism  in 
tone,  which  characterised  many  preachers,  he  reached  the 
common  people  without  any  attempt  at  pandering  to  low 
tastes.     Simplicity,  and  not  vulgarity,  was  his  aim. 

"  There  is  a  kind  of  preacher,"  he  says,  "  risen  up  of  late 
which  shroud  and  cover  every  rustical  and  unsavoury  and 
childish  and  absurd  sermon  under  the  name  of  the  simple 
kind  of  teaching.  But  indeed  to  preach  simply  is  not  to 
preach  rudely,  nor  unlearnedly,  nor  confusedly,  but  to 
preach  plamly  and  perspicuously  that  the  simplest  man 
may  understand  what  is  taught,  as  if  he  did  hear  his 
name."  ^ 

He  describes  the  hearers  as  well  as  preachers  of  his 
time. 

"  One  is  like  an  Athenian,  and  hankereth  after  news ;  if 
the  preachers  say  anything  of  our  armies  beyond  the  sea,  or 
Council  at  home,  or  matters  at  Court.  Another  cometh  to 
gaze  about  the  church ;  he  hath  an  evil  eye,  which  is  still 
looking  upon  that  from  which  Job  did  avert  his  eye.  And 
another  cometh  to  muse :  so  soon  as  he  is  set  he  falleth  into 
a  brown  study ;  sometimes  his  mind  runs  on  his  market, 
sometimes  on  his  journey,  sometimes  of  his  suit,  sometimes 
of  his  dinner,  sometimes  of  his  sport  after  dinner,  and  the 
sermon  is  done  before  the  man  thinks  where  he  is.  Another 
cometh  to  hear,  but  so  soon  as  the  preacher  hath  said  his 
prayer  he  falls  fast  asleep,  as  though  he  had  been  brought 
in  for  a  corpse,  and  the  preacher  should  preach  at  his 
funeral."  =» 

This    frankness,    keenness,    directness    and    vividness 
appear  in  his   frequent  character  sketches.      How  solemn 
*  Quoted  by  Brown,  p.  85.  -Idem,  pp.  85-86. 


3  56  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

and  searching  his  words  could  be  this  description  of 
remorse  shows. 

"  There  is  a  warning  conscience  and  a  gnawing  con- 
science. The  warning  conscience  cometh  before  sin,  the 
gnawing  conscience  followeth  after  sin.  The  warning 
conscience  is  often  lulled  asleep,  but  the  gnawing  con- 
science wakeneth  her  again.  If  there  be  any  hell  in  this 
world,  they  which  feel  the  worm  of  conscience  gnaw  upon 
their  hearts  may  truly  say  that  they  have  felt  the  torments 
of  hell.  Who  can  express  that  man's  horror  but  himself  ? 
Nay,  what  horrors  are  there  which  he  cannot  express 
himself  ?  Sorrows  are  met  in  his  soul  at  a  feast ;  and 
fear,  thought  and  anguish  divide  his  soul  between  them. 
All  the  furies  of  hell  leap  upon  his  heart  like  a  stage. 
Thought  calleth  to  fear;  fear  whistleth  to  horror;  horror 
beckoneth  to  despair,  and  saith.  Come  and  help  me  to 
torment  the  sinner.  One  saith  that  she  cometh  from  this 
sin,  and  another  saith  that  she  cometh  from  that  sin,  so  he 
goeth  through  a  thousand  deaths  and  cannot  die."  ^ 

4.  Even  greater  as  a  Puritan  preacher  than  Henry 
Smith  was  Thomas  Adams  (died  after  1630),  "the 
Shakespeare  of  the  Puritans."  "While  Adams  is  not  so 
sustained  as  Jeremy  Taylor,  nor  so  continuously  sparkling 
as  Thomas  Fuller,  he  is  surpassingly  eloquent,  and  much 
more  thought-laden  than  either."  While  doctrine  of  the 
Calvinistic  Evangelical  type  had  a  large  place  in  his 
preaching,  he  did  not  overlook  morals  and  manners.  He 
insists  on  both  learning  and  piety  in  the  preacher,  and 
warns  him  against  seeking  the  applause  of  men.  In  a 
sermon  on  the  Fatal  Banquet  he  anticipates  Bunyan  in 
describing  the  vanity  of  human  desires  and  efforts.  The 
following  sentences  explain  why  he  was  likened  to  Shake- 
speare : 

"  Oh,  how  goodly  this  building  of  man  appears  when  it 
is  clothed  with  beauty  and  honour !  A  face  full  of  majesty, 
the  throne  of  comeliness  wherein  the  whiteness  of  the  lily 
contends  with  the  sanguine  of  the   rose;  an  active  hand, 

1  Quoted  by  Brown,  pp.  88-89. 


THE   ANGLICAN   AND   THE   PURITAN  157 

an  erected  countenance,  an  eye  sparkling  out  lustre,  a 
smooth  complexion  arising  from  an  excellent  temperature 
and  composition.  Oh,  what  a  workman  was  this,  that  could 
raise  such  a  fabric  out  of  the  earth  and  lay  such  orient 
colours  upon  dust." 

Aware  of  man's  dignity,  he  is  moved  by  the  tragedy  of 
man's  sin  and  refusal  of  God's  grace. 

"  Come  then,  beloved,  to  Jesus  Christ,  come  freely, 
come  betimes,  the  flesh  calls,  we  come  ;  vanity  calls,  we 
flock;  the  world  calls,  we  fly;  let  Christ  call  early  and 
late,  He  has  yet  to  say,  '  Ye  will  not  come  unto  Me  that  ye 
might  have  life.'"  ^ 

5.  More  typical  of  the  Puritan  school,  which  was  more 
doctrinal  in  form,  and  in  spirit  more  experimental  and 
evangelical,  than  either  Smith  or  Adams,  was  Dr. 
Thomas  Goodwin  (1600-1679).  The  character  of  his 
preaching  was  determined  by  the  nature  of  his  experience. 
From  deep  conviction  of  sin  he  was  delivered  by  firm 
assurance  of  grace.  This  inward  change  at  once  banished 
the  ambition  he  had  cherished  to  win  popularity  by  the 
"  vainglorious  eloquence "  cultivated  by  some  preachers 
at  the  university,  and  brought  him  to  the  resolution  that 
he  would  "  preach  wholly  and  altogether  sound  and  whole- 
some words,  without  affectation  of  wit  and  vanity  of 
eloquence."  At  the  end  of  his  life  he  could  say :  "  I  have 
preached  what  I  thought  was  truly  edifying,  either  for 
conversion  or  bringing  them  up  to  eternal  life."  Dr. 
Brown  regards  as  characteristic  of  his  preaching,  and  so 
outlines  the  argument  of  a  seimon  on  "  The  Heart  of 
Christ  in  Heaven  to  sinners  on  earth."  The  purpose  of 
this  sermon,  he  says,  "  was  to  make  intensely  real  to  the 
men  to  whom  he  spoke  the  Christ  who  had  gone  beyond 
the  region  of  sight  into  the  heavens — to  make  them  feel 
that  He  was  as  closely  one  with  them  in  sympathy  and 
personal  relations  of  helpfulness  as  though  they  could  look 
into  His  face."  ^  The  argument  may  be  summarised  in  one 
sentence.     The  living  Christ  is  the  same  in  character  and 

^  Brown,  op.  cit.,  pp.  89-95.  -  Op.  ciL,  pp.  100-114. 


158  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

purpose  as  the  historical  Jesus ;  and  what  He  is  in  heaven 
that  as  universally  present  He  also  is  to  us  on  earth.^ 

6.  After  1662,  Puritanism  survived  under  the  name  of 
Nonconformity.  Hering  mentions  as  the  representatives 
of  vs^hat  he  calls  "  the  ascetic  tendency,"  to  which  also  he 
ascribes  an  influence  on  German  pietism,  Kichard  Baxter 
(1615-1691)  and  John  Bunyan  (1628-1688).  To  each 
of  these  Dr.  Brown  devotes  a  lecture.  John  Bunyan's 
Pilgrim's  Progress  is  one  of  the  classics  of  English  litera- 
ture, but  here  we  must  think  of  him  only  as  a  preacher. 

"  John  Bunyan  is  chiefly  thought  of,"  says  Brown,  "  as  a 
Dreamer  of  wonderful  dreams,  but  he  was  also,  as  his  con- 
temporaries have  told  us,  one  of  the  most  living  preachers 
England  has  ever  known.  His  own  intense  religious  ex- 
perience largely  aided  his  genius  in  this.  As  he  tells  us 
himself,  he  had  tarried  long  at  Sinai  to  see  the  fire  and  the 
cloud  and  the  darkness,  that  he  might  fear  the  Lord  all  the 
days  of  his  life  upon  earth,  and  tell  of  his  wonders  to  others. 
So  that  when,  in  after  days,  he  spoke  with  kindling  eye  and 
tongue  of  fire  the  things  that  he  had  seen  and  felt,  men  bent 
to  his  words  as  the  cane  bends  to  the  wind.  No  piler-up  of 
mere  rhetoric  was  this  Dreamer  of  Bedford,  but  one  deeply 
learned  in  the  lore  of  human  souls,  heaven-taught  in  the 
great  and  wonderful  art  of  laying  hold  of  men."  ^ 

His  idea,  which  he  largely  realised,  of  the  preacher  is 
given  in  his  description  of  the  picture  Christian  saw  in  the 
house  of  the  Interpreter. 

"  Christian  saw  the  picture  of  a  very  grave  person 
hang  up  against  the  wall ;  and  this  was  the  fashion  of  it. 
It  had  eyes  uplift  to  Heaven,  the  best  of  Books  in  his  hand, 
the  law  of  Truth  was  written  upon  his  lips,  the  world  was 
behind  his  back ;  it  stood  as  if  it  pleaded  with  men,  and  a 
crown  of  gold  did  hang  over  its  head."  ^ 

Bunyan  has  the  Christian  minister  in  view  in  his 
description  of  Evangelist,  the  porter  Watchful,  Greatheart, 

^HLH,  p.  137. 

2  Op.  ciL,  p.  133.     See  Life  of  John  Bunyan,  by  John  Brown,  D.D., 
London,  1885. 
8  P.  135. 


THE   ANGLICAN  AND   THE   PURITAN  159 

and  the  Shepherds  of  the  Delectable  Mountains,  Know- 
ledge, Experience,  Watchful,  and  Sincere.  As  a  preacher, 
"  he  was  a  master  of  grand  and  noble  Saxon  speech  "  ;  ^  he 
aimed  at  simplicity  and  directness  ;  he  sustained  the  interest 
of  his  hearers,  never  becoming  dull ;  he  confined  himself  to 
permanent  and  universal  truths,  the  central  themes,  and 
"  spoke  of  them  with  an  honest  ring  of  clear  conviction."  ^ 
So  familiar  are,  or  should  be,  his  writings,  that  no  illustra- 
tion of  his  subjects  or  style  need  be  given. 

7.  Richard  Baxter  is  enshrined  in  history  as  the 
Kidderminster  Pastor,  for  it  is  for  his  faithful  and  successful 
work  in  that  then  unpromising  place  that  he  should  be 
remembered  even  more  than  for  his  writings,  one  of  which, 
2'?ie  Saint's  Everlasting  Rest,  may  be  mentioned  as  a  religious 
classic. 

"  There  have  been  three  or  four  parishes  in  England 
which  have  been  raised  by  their  pastors  to  a  national,  almost 
a  world-wide,  fame.  Of  these  the  most  conspicuous  is 
Kidderminster ;  for,  Baxter  without  Kidderminster  would 
have  been  but  half  of  himself ;  and  Kidderminster  without 
Baxter  would  have  had  nothing  but  its  carpets.''  * 

While  he  was  a  model  as  a  pastor  in  his  care  of  souls, 
it  was  his  preaching  that  transformed  the  town.  A  godless 
people  were  turned  to  godliness.  The  carpet-weavers  be- 
came deeply  versed  in  theology,  but  better  still,  were 
marked  by  their  spirituality  and  sanctity.  The  people 
repeated  his  sermons  in  their  lives  with  like  effect. 

"  The  holy,  humble,  blameless  lives  of  the  religious  sort 
was  a  great  advantage  to  me,"  says  Baxter  himself.  "  The 
malicious  sort  could  not  say.  Your  professora  here  are  as 
proud  and  covetous  as  any.  But  the  blameless  lives  of 
godly  people  did  shame  opposers,  and  put  to  silence  the 
ignorance  of  foolish  men,  and  many  were  won  by  their  good 
conversations."  * 

»  P.  145.  2  p^  154 

'  Dean  Stanley,  quoted  by  Brown,  p.  169. 

*  Quoted  by  Brown,  p.  171. 


160  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Nature  had  not  given  him  any  advantage  as  a  preacher, 
except  a  glowing  eye  and  a  moving  voice.  He  combined 
"  vigorous  intellect  and  vehement  speech  "  with  "  a  devotion 
pure  and  ethereal,  a  benevolence  ardent  and  sincere,"  and 
an  unfailiug  earnestness.  His  own  weak  health  made  very 
real  to  him  the  unseen  future.     He  says  of  himself : 

"  Doing  all  in  bodily  weakness,  as  a  dying  man,  my  soul 
was  all  the  more  easily  brought  to  seriousness,  and  to  preach 
as  a  dying  man  to  dying  men  ;  for  drowsy  formality  and 
customariness  doth  but  stupefy  the  hearers  and  rock  them 
asleep.  It  must  be  serious  preaching  which  must  make  men 
serious  in  hearing  and  obeying  it."  ^ 

He  advises   preachers  to  feel  ever  that  necessity  is  laid 
upon  them  in  study  and  labour  alike. 

8.  Although  George  Fox  (1624-1691)  is  not  even 
mentioned  in  the  Histories  of  Preaching  the  writer  has 
consulted,  his  name  cannot  be  altogether  passed  over. 
From  his  twelfth  year  employed  by  a  shoemaker  and 
shepherd,  his  youth  was  passed  in  inward  struggles,  and 
in  his  nineteenth  year  he  began  to  denounce  the  clergy  of 
the  Church  for  selling  the  word.  Abandoning  his  earthly 
calling,  clothed  in  leather,  amid  hardships,  perils,  and 
persecutions,  as  "  a  man  of  sorrows  "  he  moved  about  the 
country  preaching  his  own  doctrines — "  Christ  in  us,"  "  the 
Unction  from  above,"  and  "  the  Inner  Light."  In  six  years 
he  had  gathered  companions  around  him,  in  spite  of  all 
attempts  to  suppress  the  movement.  Three  years  later  he 
found  a  home  in  the  Manor  of  Swarthmoor ;  and  here  was 
founded  the  community,  nicknamed  Quakers,  calling  itself 
the  Society  of  Friends.  He  employed  his  frequent  im- 
prisonments for  writing,  and  so  continued  to  influence  the 
movement.  In  its  interests,  too,  he  visited  North  America, 
the  West  Indies,  and  Germany.  His  mysticism  retained  a 
Christian  character,  but  was  not  altogether  free  of  fanaticism. 
To  regard  him,  however,  as  only  affording  an  interesting 
object  of  study  in  religious  pathology  would  be  to  mis- 
understand him.  With  all  his  eccentricity,  he  must  be 
»  Quoted  by  Brown,  p.  177. 


THE  ANGLICAN  AND   THE   PURITAN  161 

regarded  as  "  a  man  of  the  spirit "  raised  up  for  a  work 
needing  to  be  done. 

III. 

Dr.  Brown  maintains  that  "any  study  of  Puritan 
preaching  in  the  seventeenth  century  would  be  incomplete 
without  some  reference  to  that  small  body  of  remarkable 
men  known  as  the  '  Cambridge  Platonists,'  or,  the  '  Sect 
of  Latitude  Men,'  or  the  *  Latitudinarians '  as  they  were 
variously  called ;  including  Benjamin  Whichcote,  Ralph 
Cudworth,  Nathaniel  Culverwell,  John  Smith,  and  Henry 
More,"  since  "  though  separating  themselves  from  much 
that  was  distinctively  Puritan,  they  yet  started  from  Puri- 
tanism and  were  greatly  influenced  by  it."^  This  school 
attempted  to  reconcile  reason  and  revelation,  Christianity 
and  philosophy ;  but  they  failed  to  exercise  any  wide  or 
lasting  influence  on  either  religious  or  speculative  thought. 

1.  One  of  the  hearers  whom  Whichcote  inspired  was 
John  Tillotson  (1630-1694),  who  became  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury  in   1691.      Hering^  mentions  him  as  the 

iP.  114. 

^  HLH  136.  Simpson  in  his  Preachers  mid  Teachers,  pp.  106-107,  offers 
an  estimate  of  him  worth  quoting.  "Tillotson,  in  fact,  represents  more 
fully,  perhaps,  than  any  other  English  divine,  the  religious  appeal  most 
consonant  with  the  spirit  and  ideas  of  the  middle-classes  among  his  fellow- 
countrymen — in  fact,  of  the  typical  Englishman.  Springing  from  a  class 
and  county  which  have  no  vein  of  mysticism,  and  where  the  dictates  of  « 
common  sense,  which  is  taken  as  coincident  with  reason,  are  more  highly 
valued  than  the  impulses  of  an  exalted  spirit,  there  is  something  solid,  not 
to  say  tangible,  in  these  views  of  religion  which  he  most  forcibly  recom- 
mends. He  is  no  prophet  nor  expounder  of  mysteries.  He  moves  more 
easily  among  the  normal  effects  of  religion  than  in  the  contemplation  of  God, 
or  the  realization  of  Christ  or  the  spiritual  life.  The  very  phrases,  the  very 
turns  of  expression  which  he  adopts  are  those  with  which  we  are  still  familiar 
in  the  speech  of  sober  and  undemonstrative  Britons.  What  is  personal, 
direct,  intimate,  he  instinctively  avoids.  He  will  speak  of  'professing  the 
Christian  religion'  where  a  Spurgeon  might  speak  of  'closing  with  Christ.* 
Jesus  is  '  the  author  of  the  doctrine '  rather  than  '  the  friend  of  sinners.'  On 
Good  Friday  he  '  considers  the  sufferings  of  Christ  as  a  proper  means  of 
salvation,'  instead  of  preaching  the  Gospel  and  leading  burdened  souls  to  the 
foot  of  the  Cross.  There  is  a  studied  moderation  in  his  commeudation  of 
the  example  of  Christ." 


162  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

most  noble  representative  of  the  new  type  of  preaching  in 
which  the  emphasis  fell  on  reason  rather  than  faith,  moral 
character  rather  than  religious  experience,  and,  under  the 
influence  of  science  and  philosophy,  the  Christian  message 
was  rationalised  and  moralised.  Such  was  his  fame  as  a 
preacher  that  his  sermons  were  translated  into  German 
and  French,  and  won  the  praise  of  Mosheim  and  the 
admiration  of  Voltaire.     Bishop  Burnet  said  of  him : 

"He  was  not  only  the  best  preacher  of  the  age,  but 
seemed  to  have  brought  preaching  to  perfection  ;  his  sermons 
were  so  well  liked  that  all  the  nation  proposed  him  as  a 
pattern  and  studied  to  copy  after  him."  ^ 

His  subjects,  however,  do  not  awaken  our  interest,  nor  his 
style  suit  our  taste  to-day. 

2.  While  representing  the  same  tendency,  Eobert  South 
(1633-1716)  may  be  regarded  as  even  a  greater  preacher 
than  Tillotson.  Henry  Eogers  assigns  him  a  very  high 
place. 

"  Of  all  the  English  preachers.  South  seems  to  furnish  in 
point  of  style  the  truest  specimen  of  pulpit  eloquence.  His 
robust  intellect,  his  shrewd  common  sense,  his  vehement 
feelings,  and  a  fancy  always  more  distinguished  by  force 
than  by  elegance,  admirably  qualified  him  for  a  powerful 
public  speaker.  His  style  is  everywhere  direct,  condensed, 
pungent.  His  sermons  are  well  worthy  of  frequent  and 
diligent  perusal  by  every  young  preacher."  ^ 

Dr.  Brown  appears  to  endorse  this  opinion,  and  adds 
in  confirmation  of  it  a  reference  to  one  of  his  sermons. 

"  There  is  a  sermon  of  his  in  which  he  pours  scorn  on 
the  florid  declamation,  the  mere  tinsel  rhetoric  which  some 
people  think  to  be  so  very  fine.  He  mentions  no  names, 
but  you  can  see  that  he  is  speaking  for  the  especial  benefit 
of  his  illustrious  but  too  fanciful  and  ornate  contemporary 
Jeremy  Taylor.  The  passage  is  worth  quoting :  '  I  speak 
the  words  of  soberness,'  said  St.  Paul,  'and  I  preach  the 
Gospel  not  with  the  enticing  words  of  man's  wisdom,'  This 
was  the  way  of  the  Apostle's  discoursing  of  things  sacred. 

1  Quoted  by  DHP  ii.  p.  165.  » Idem,  p.  167. 


THE   ANGLICAN   AND   THE   PURITAN  163 

Nothing  here  of '  the  fringes  of  the  north  star ' ;  nothing  *  of 
nature's  becoming  unnatural ' ;  nothing  of  the  '  down  of 
angels'  wings '  or  '  the  beautiful  locks  of  cherubims ' ;  no 
starched  similitudes  introduced  with  a  '  Thus  have  I  seen  a 
cloud  rolling  in  its  airy  mansion,'  and  the  like.  No — these 
were  sublimities  above  the  use  of  the  apostolic  spirit.  For 
the  Apostles,  poor  mortals,  were  content  to  take  lower  steps, 
and  to  tell  the  world  in  plain  terms  that  he  who  believed 
should  be  saved,  and  that  he  who  believed  not  should  be 
damned.  And  this  was  the  dialect  which  pierced  the 
conscience  and  made  the  hearers  cry  out,  Men  and  brethren, 
what  shall  we  do  ?  It  tickled  not  the  ear,  but  it  sunk  into 
the  heart,  and  when  men  came  from  such  sermons  they 
never  commended  the  preacher  for  his  taking  voice  or 
gesture,  for  the  fineness  of  such  a  simile  or  the  quaintness 
of  such  a  sentence ;  but  they  spoke  like  men  conquered  with 
the  overpowering  force  and  evidence  of  the  most  concerning 
truths,  much  in  the  words  of  the  two  disciples  going  to 
Emmaus:  'Did  not  our  hearts  burn  within  us  while  He 
opened  to  us  the  Scriptures '  ?  In  a  word,  the  Apostles' 
preaching  was  therefore  mighty  and  successful,  because 
plain,  natural,  and  familiar,  and  by  no  means  above  the 
capacity  of  their  hearers ;  nothing  being  more  preposterous 
than  for  those  who  were  professedly  aiming  at  men's  hearts 
to  miss  the  mark  by  shooting  over  their  heads."  ^ 

This  is  admirable  criticism  for  every  age.  But  South 
himself  showed  more  mind  than  heart. 

3.  While  these  preachers  opposed  themselves  to  the 
increasing  deistic  tendency,  yet  they  had  not  a  little  in 
common  with  it. 

"  The  same  tendencies,"  says  Fisher,  "  which  produced 
the  Latitudinarian  movement  led,  in  minds  of  a  different 
cast  and  training,  to  the  development  of  Deism,  and  gave 
rise  to  the  Deistic  controversy.  There  were  minds  less 
appreciative  of  the  need  and  the  nature  of  Christianity. 
There  were  special  co-operative  influences,  among  which 
was  the  effect  of  the  Copernican  discovery  upon  the  views 
taken  of  Scripture  and  its  effect,  along  with  that  of  the 
philosophy  of  Bacon,  and  of  the  new  studies  in  natural 
,  science,  upon  the  general  mood  of  feeling.     This  new  mood 

»  Oil.  ciU,  pp.  175-177. 


164  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

may  be  described,  for  the  lack  of  a  better  term,  as  rational- 
istic. Deism  in  its  English  type  did  not,  like  the  Epicurean 
theory,  deny  the  Providence  of  the  Deity.  It  cast  aside  the 
belief  in  a  special  revelation,  and  of  course  the  reahty  of 
denied  miracles.  The  Latitudinarians  sought  for  the  basis 
of  the  religious  creed  in  the  truths  held  in  common  by  the 
various  contending  Christian,  or  at  least,  Protestant  bodies. 
The  Deists  did  the  same  in  reference  to  the  different  forms 
of  religion,  including  the  Christian.  The  value  of  the  Bible 
is  made  to  consist  in  its  republication,  but  without  super- 
natural sanction,  of  the  principles  of  natuial  religion,  ascer- 
tainable and  ascertained  by  *  the  light  of  nature.' "  ^ 

4.  The  controversy  does  not  require  our  close  attention, 
but  it  is  necessary  to  remember  that  it  was  a  potent 
influence  on  the  religious  thought  and  life  of  England, 
depressing  spiritual  vitality  and  decreasing  moral  vigour 
alike.  Amid  such  conditions  we  cannot  look  for,  and  we 
do  not  find,  great  preaching.  A  few  names,  however,  call 
for  mention.  We  must  mention  first  of  all  Bishop  Butler 
(1692-1752).  The  conditions  under  which  he  did  his 
work  have  been  described  by  Canon  Simpson  in  his  study 
of  Butler's  Sermons.^ 

"  Men  laughed  at  ideals,  and  scorned  enthusiasms.  They 
knew  no  measure  of  excellence  but  that  of  material  comfort, 
no  standard  of  value  but  that  of  personal  advantage.  The 
aristocracy  were  devoted  to  cynicism  and  clothes;  the 
middle  -  classes  immersed  in  commerce;  the  proletariat 
steeped  in  gin.  If  religion  was  ever  near  to  extinction  in 
this  country  it  was  then.  As  the  brotherhood  of  man  was 
discounted  by  a  cool  self-love,  so  the  love  of  God  was  deemed 
an  extravagant  enthusiasm  by  a  temper  that  mistook  itself 
for  sober  Reason.  .  .  .  There  were  no  problems.  For  the 
fashionable  there  were  routs,  for  the  merchants  wealth,  for 
the  multitude  enough  to  eat  and  too  much  to  drink.  And 
so  the  world  wagged."  ^ 

As  Butler's  own  words  in  his  advertisement  of .  his 
famous  work   The  Analogy  show,  he  was  acutely  sensitive 

*  History  of  Christian  Doctrine,  pp.  371-372. 

*  Preachers  and  Teachers,  v.  pp.  145-173. 

*  Idem,  pp.  146-147. 


THE  ANGLICAN  AND   THE   PURITAN  165 

to  the  contemptuous  rather  than  hostile  attitude  of  the 
"  people  of  discernment "  to  Christianity.  To  the  "  un- 
mitigated individualism "  of  its  morals  he  opposed  a 
conception  of  the  relation  of  the  individual  to  society, 
which  is  being  now  forced  on  our  recognition, 

"  The  greatness  of  Bishop  Butler,"  says  Simpson,  "  con- 
sists in  this,  that,  when  the  developments  of  the  nineteenth 
century  were  yet  unborn,  when  neither  biological  science 
nor  industrial  disorganization  nor  religious  revival  had 
emphasised  the  social  principle,  he  reaffirmed,  against  the 
prevailing  sentiment  of  the  age,  and  by  vigorous  application 
of  the  very  method  by  which  his  contemporaries  endeavoured 
to  establish  their  '  reasonable  '  view  of  life,  the  great  truth 
rooted  deeply  in  human  nature,  the  basis  alike  of  moral 
relationships  and  social  unities  and  submission  to  a  Living 
Will  larger  than  the  purposes  of  men,  which  St.  Paul  had 
expressed  in  the  words  *  We  are  members  one  of  another.' "  ^ 

For  him  the  benevolence  which  recognised  the  claims 
of  fellow-men  was  bound  to,  nay  even  rooted  in,  the  piety 
which  submitted  to  the  Will  of  God. 

"  Human  nature  is  so  constituted,"  he  says,  "  that  every 
good  affection  implies  the  love  of  itself.  It  becomes  the 
object  of  a  new  affection  in  the  same  person.  Thus,  to  be 
righteous,  implies  in  it  the  love  of  righteousness;  to  be 
benevolent,  the  love  of  benevolence ;  to  be  good,  the  love  of 
goodness ;  whether  this  righteousness,  benevolence,  or  good- 
ness be  viewed  as  in  our  mind,  or  in  another's.  And  the 
love  of  God,  as  a  being  perfectly  good,  is  the  love  of  perfect 
goodness  contemplated  in  a  Being  or  Person.  Thus  morality 
and  religion,  virtue  and  piety,  will  at  last  necessarily  coincide, 
run  up  into  one  and  the  same  point,  and  love  will  be  in  all 
senses  the  end  of  the  commandment"  ^ 

His  contribution  to  ethical  theory  is  contained  in 
fifteen  sermons,  which  are  hard  to  read,  and  must  have  been 
even  harder  to  hear.  The  difficulties  they  present  are  not 
altogether  due  to  their  subjects,  but  to  the  defects  of 
Butler's  style,  as  well  as  the  too  great  closeness  of  his 
reasoning.     While  he  cannot  be  taken  as  an  example  of  an 

^  Idem,  p.  158.  -  Quoted  by  Simpsou,  ojy.  eit.,  p.  173. 


166  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

effective  preacher,  yet  his  contribution  to  the  thought  and 
life  of  his  age  was  so  weighty,  that  he  cannot  be  passed 
over  in  a  history  of  preaching.  Few,  if  any,  sermons  have 
been  so  much  studied  as  his  have  been. 

5.  Contemporary  with  Butler,  but  illustrating  the 
Puritan  or  Nonconformist  as  he  does  the  Anglican  type, 
were  two  Independent  preachers  whose  names  are  still  held 
in  honour,  Isaac  Watts  (167 4- 1748)  ^  and  Philip  Doddridge 
(1702-1751).  They  represent  the  quiet  and  sober  evan- 
gelicalism, which  had  not  yet  caught  the  glow  of  the 
Evangelical  Ptevival,  and  may  therefore  be  mentioned  here. 
Watts  is  best  known  as  a  hymn  writer,  but  his  sermons 
do  not  show  the  qualities  one  would  expect,  for  they  are 
not  poetical  nor  even  emotional.  They  do  not  show  him 
as  a  great  preacher.  Doddridge  is  noted  for  his  work  as 
the  teacher  of  many  preachers  in  his  Academy,  first  at 
Kibworth  near  Leicester,  and  then  at  Northampton,^  and 
for  his  well-known  work  on  experimental  religion.  The 
Bise  and  Progress  of  Religion  in  the  Soul.  "  His  sermons," 
says  Dargan,  "  are  judicious  rather  than  weighty  in  thought, 
evangelical  in  theology,  clear  in  order  and  style,  but  with 
no  special  unction  or  eloquence."^  His  work  as  an 
educationalist  deserves  lasting  remembrance.  "  Doddridge 
was  great  not  only  in  his  own  Academy  at  Northampton, 
but  in  his  influence  in  the  country  generally.  In  his  day, 
to  mention  Northampton  Academy  was  not  merely  to 
speak  of  the  best  educational  centre  in  the  country,  it  was 
also  to  speak  of  a  new  education."*  The  students  were 
encouraged  in  the  study  of  French  that  they  might  become 
familiar  with  the  great  French  preachers.  Of  the  kind  of 
teaching  given  the  same  writer  says :  "  Indeed  the  Tutors 

*  The  Life  of  Isaac  Watts,  by  Thomas  Wright,  London,  1914. 

'  Admission  to  his  Academy  was  not  confined  to  students  for  the 
Ministry  ;  but  boys  preparing  for  other  professions  were  also  admitted. 
The  sons  of  clergy  and  lay  members  of  the  Established  Church  were  sent 
because  the  education  was  better  and  cheaper  than  at  the  Universities. 
There  was  careful  moral  supervision,  and  no  "  undue  influence"  was  exerted 
to  effect  any  change  of  religious  opinion.  (See  Dissenting  Academies  in 
England,  by  Irene  Parker,  M.A.,  pp.  83-84.) 

3  DHP  ii.  p.  331.  *  Parker,  op.  cU.,  p.  101. 


THE   ANGLICAN  AND   THE   PURITAN  167 

seem  to  have  been  desirous  not  of  cramming  their  students 
with  facts,  but  of  educating  them  and  of  training  them  to 
think,  and  what  is  more,  to  express  their  thoughts  in  their 
own  tongue."  ^ 

IV. 

1.  Across  the  Border  there  was  in  the  eighteenth 
century  a  movement  which  resulted  in  a  similar  contrast 
of  types  among  the  Scottish  preachers,  that  between  the 
Evangelicals  and  the  Moderates.  As  this  movement  began 
before  the  Evangelical  Eevival  in  England,  and  was  due  to 
the  influence  of  a  book,  The  Marrow  of  Modern  Diviniti/, 
which,  although  the  authorship  is  unknown,  belongs  to  the 
Puritan  type  in  England,  it  falls  to  be  mentioned  in  this 
connection. 

(1)  Of  the  book  which  had  so  great  an  influence  on  the 
preaching  of  Scotland,  either  by  commanding  assent  or 
provoking  antagonism,  the  modern  editor,  the  Eev.  Dr.  C. 
G.  McCree,  writes : 

"  The  design  of  the  treatise  is  to  elucidate  and  establish 
the  perfect  freeness  of  the  Gospel  salvation  ;  to  throw  wide 
open  the  gates  of  righteousness ;  to  lead  the  sinner  straight 
to  the  Saviour;  to  introduce  him  as  guilty,  impotent  and 
undone;  and  to  persuade  him  to  grasp,  without  a  moment's 
hesitation,  the  outstretched  hand  of  God's  mercy."  ^ 

(2)  Thomas  Boston  (1676-1732)  was  ordained  in  1699 
to  the  charge  of  Simprim  in  Berwickshire ;  but  his  mind 
was  in  difficulty  and  doubt  about  the  Gospel.  It  was  this 
book  from  England  which  brought  him  theologically  out  of 
darkness  into  light,  when  he  found  it  in  1770  in  the  house 
of  one  of  his  parishioners.  In  1717  he  was  led  to  speak 
to  others  about  it,  and  in  1718  it  was  reprinted.  Its 
influence  spread  so  rapidly  that  in  1720  the  General 
Assembly  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  condemned  its  teaching 
on  five  matters  as  contrary  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  the 
Confession  of  Faith,  and  the  Catechisms.  A  remonstrance 
from  the  "  Marrow  "  men,  as  they  were  called,  against  this 
decision  -vas  dismissed  in  1722,  and  the  previous  action 

*  P.  103.  '  p.  XV,  ed.  published  by  Bryce,  1902. 


168  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

was  confirmed  and  explained.  The  controversy  need  not 
be  followed  further,  but  its  issue  was  the  first  Secession  in 
1733.     The  opponents  of  the  book  were  hyper-Calvinists. 

"  The  Calvinism  of  the  Marrow,  on  the  other  hand,  was 
broad,  catholic,  liberal.  The  Marrow  men,  both  in  England 
and  Scotland,  dwelt  much  upon  the  love  of  God  for  the 
whole  world,  the  offer  of  Christ  to  every  sinner.  .  .  .  Believ- 
ing the  Gospel  offer  was  for  all,  that  to  mankind  sinners  the 
call  and  overture  of  divine  love  are  to  be  addressed,  the 
moderate  Calvinists  of  the  eighteenth  century  were  animated 
and  dominated  by  the  missionary  spirit  of  Christianity."  ^ 

Among  the  "  Marrow  "  men  were  noted  preachers  such 
as  Boston  himself,  and  the  brothers  Erskine,  Ebenezer 
(1680-1756)  and  Ealph  (1685-1752).  Of  their  work 
in  Scotland  a  general  description  must  suffice. 

"The  Ministers  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  who  were 
evangelical  in  creed  and  evangelistic  in  preaching,  proclaim- 
ing a  gospel  of  good  tidings  of  great  joy  to  all  people,  were 
preachers  whom  the  common  people  heard  gladly.  They 
secured  large  audiences  wherever  they  ministered,  and  on 
communion  occasions  they  gathered  immense  crowds  to 
their  open-air  services.  To  the  Marrow  men  and  those  who 
lighted  their  torches  at  the  same  altar  fire  we  owe  the  main- 
tenance in  Scotland  of  the  evangelistic  and  evangelical 
succession  at  a  time  when  the  dominant  party  in  the 
Church  of  Scotland,  becoming  heartless  in  a  high  and  dry 
hyper- Calvinism,  abandoned  theology  for  morahty,  and  so 
drifted  into  moderatism."  ^ 

(3)  A  sample  of  the  kind  of  preaching  of  these  men 
is  afforded  by  Boston's  series  of  sermons  on  The  Fourfold 
State  of  Man  (1712).  In  the  opening  sentences  of  the 
first  sermon  he  clearly  states  his  intention. 

"  There  are  four  things  very  necessary  to  be  known  by 
all  that  would  see  heaven.  First,  what  man  was  in  the 
state  of  innocence  as  God  made  him.  Secondly,  what  he 
is  in  the  state  of  corrupt  nature  as  he  had  unmade  himself. 
Thirdly,  what  he  must  be  in  the  state  of  grace  as  '  created 
in  Christ  Jesus  unto  good  works,'  if  ever  he  be  made  a  par- 


1  Idem,  pp.  xxviii,  xxix.  *  Jdem,  pp.  xxix,  xxi. 


THE   ANGLICAN  AND   THE   PURITAN  169 

taker  of  the  '  inheritance  of  the  saints  in  life.'  And,  lastly, 
what  he  should  be  in  his  eternal  state  as  made  by  the  Judge 
of  all,  either  perfectly  happy  or  completely  miserable,  and 
that  for  ever.  These  are  weighty  points  that  touch  the 
vitals  of  practical  godliness;  from  which  most  men  and 
even  many  professors,  in  these  dregs  of  time,  are  quite 
estranged.  I  design,  therefore,  under  the  divine  conduct 
to  open  up  these  things  and  apply  them."  ^ 

Much  of  the  theology  is  now  antiquated ;  the  form  of 
the  sermons  is  scholastic  to  the  extreme  ;  there  is  a  lack 
both  of  imagination  and  illustration ;  and  yet  the  fervent 
feehng  gives  them  living  power. 

(4)  When  just  entering  on  his  work,  Boston  wrote  a 
Soliloquy  on  the  art  of  Man-Fishing?  The  account  he 
gives  of  the  occasion  of  writing  it  is  worth  quoting,  as  it 
reveals  the  preacher's  true  aim. 

"The  occasion  thereof  was  this  —  January  6,  1699, 
reading  in  secret  my  heart  was  touched  with  Matt.  iv.  19, 
'  Follow  Me,  and  I  will  make  you  fishers  of  men.'  My  soul 
cried  out  for  accomplishing  of  that  to  me,  and  I  was  very 
desirous  to  know  how  I  might  follow  Christ  so  as  to  become 
a  fisher  of  men,  and  for  my  own  instruction  on  that  point  I 
addressed  myself  to  the  consideration  of  it  in  that  manner. 
And,  indeed,  it  was  much  in  my  heart  in  these  days,  not  to 
preach  the  wisdom  of  mine  own  heart,  or  produce  of  my 
own  gifts,  but  to  depend  on  the  Lord  for  light  that  I  might, 
if  I  could  have  reached  it,  been  able  to  say  of  every  word, 
'Thussaith  theLord."'3 

This  meditation  on  his  craft  by  a  master  of  it  is  still 
worthy  of  the  study  of  his  fellow-craftsmen. 

2.  The  Moderates  were  opposed  to  all  enthusiasm,  which 
they  regarded  as  fanaticism.  They  insisted  on  moral 
character  rather  than  religious  experience ;  but  as  their 
morality  had  no  deep  roots,  so  it  bore  no  rich  fruits. 
They  attached  much  importance  to  good  taste  and  literary 
excellence. 

(1)  One  of  the  extreme  instances  of  this  tendency  was 

1  Quoted  in  DHP  ii.  pp.  336-337. 

*  Published  by  Alexander  Gardner,  1899.  "  0^.  cit.,  p.  11. 


170  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Alexander  Carlyle  (1722—1805),  who  can  be  described 
only  as  a  cultured,  capable  and  respectable  worldling,  for 
whom  the  ministry  was  "  the  clerical  profession,"  and  who 
prized  above  all  the  admiration  which  his  oratory  evoked 
among  his  genteel  hearers.^ 

(2)  To  the  same  school  belonged  Dr.  Hugh  Blair 
(1718—1800).  He  combined  the  duties  of  a  parish  in 
Edinburgh  with  the  professorship  of  Belles  Lettres  at 
Edinburgh  University.  His  lectures  in  Ehetoric  were 
very  popular,  and  for  many  years  were  regarded  as  the 
best  text-book  on  the  subject.  A  man  of  finer  character 
than  Carlyle,  his  preaching  was  of  the  same  type. 

"His  sermons  are  cold  presentations  of  the  accepted 
Christian  doctrines  and  ethics,  without  the  warmth  of 
evangelic  earnestness  or  the  driving  power  of  great  convic- 
tion. There  is  want  of  vitality,  and  the  elegance  which 
characterizes  them  has  passed  away  along  with  the  starched 
frills,  powdered  wigs,  and  buckled  knee-breeches  of  that 
age."  2 

In  Scotland,  as  in  England,  there  was  need  of  religious 
revival,  although  in  each  there  was  a  '*  remnant." 
1  DHP  iL  p.  339.  *  P.  341. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ORATORS   AND   COURTIERS. 

I. 

1.  Pee  ACHING  is  more  appreciated  and  exercises  greater 
influence  in  Protestantism  than  in  Eoman  Catholicism ;  and 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  classic  period  of  the  Eoman 
Catholic  pulpit  in  France  had  as  one  of  its  antecedents  the 
influence  of  the  French  preachers  of  the  Reformation.  It 
was  inevitable  that  much  of  this  preaching  was  polemical, 
directed  against  Roman  Catholicism,  in  defence  of  the 
Reformed  theology.  This  controversy  worked  less  injuri- 
ously on  religious  life  than  in  Germany ;  and  as  regards 
the  form  of  the  sermons,  French  tact  and  taste  saved 
preaching  from  the  commonness  and  coarseness  into  which 
elsewhere  controversy  fell.  Hering  distinguishes  two 
periods  in  Protestant  preaching  in  France. 

"  In  the  first  controversy  comes  much  to  the  front ;  the 
development  of  thought  attaches  itself  closely  to  the  text, 
and  endeavours,  if  at  all,  to  get  beyond  the  analytical- 
exegetical  method  to  a  grouping  arrangement,  and  to  a 
structure  which  attaches  itself  to  the  thoughts  of  the 
Biblical  passage."  ..."  This  epoch  passes  slowly  over  into 
the  other,  in  which  the  synthetic  displaces  the  disjointed 
analytic  method,  and  instead  of  the  labour  to  explain  the 
Bible  comes  the  endeavour  to  seize  a  main  thought  in  the 
text,  and  to  unfold  it."  ^ 

It  is  this  tendency  to  a  more  artistic  form  which 
prepares  the  way  for  the  classic  period  of  the  French  pulpit. 

^  HLH,  p.  132.     Hering  refers  in  a  note  on  p.  131  to  the  work  of  Vinet, 

Historie  de  la  Predication  parmi  les  riformf^  de  la  France  au  17  aiide. 

Paris,  1860. 

171 


172  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

2.  One  of  the  most  vigorous  opponents  of  Eoman 
Catholicism  was  Pierre  du  Moulin  (1568—1658).  In  his 
preaching  there  was  no  oratory;  it  was  simple  and  poprdar. 
The  eloquence  of  Moses  Amyraut  (1596-1664)  excited  the 
admiration  even  of  Eoman  Catholics,  and  impressed  such 
critical  hearers  as  Richelieu  and  Mazarin  in  favour  of  the 
persecuted  Protestants.  Jean  D'Ailly  (1595—1670)  was 
regarded  in  his  Church  us  the  greatest  man  since  Calvin ; 
although  he  is  as  vehement  a  controversialist,  he  is  also  a 
greater  stylist  than  his  predecessors.  To  the  transition 
between  the  two  periods  belongs  Jean  Claude  (1619-1687). 
Even  his  opponents  spoke  of  "  ce  fameux  M.  Claude,"  and 
the  great  Bossuet  dreaded  his  logical  powers.  He  already 
was  influenced  by  the  conditions  which  produced  the  classic 
French  oratory.  Among  the  exiles  from  France  after  the 
revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes  (1685)  who  carried  this 
influence  with  them,  the  most  noted  was  P.  Dubosc  (died 
at  Rotterdam  1692),  of  whom  Van  Oosterzee  gives  a  very 
high  estimate. 

"  After  Louis  xiv.  had  on  one  occasion  listened  to  him 
pleading  the  cause  of  the  Protestants,  he  declared  that  he 
had  that  day  heard  the  most  eloquent  man  of  his  Kingdom. 
As  an  orator  he  rendered  to  Calvinism  no  less  important 
services  than  did  Claude  as  a  controversialist ;  and  when  he 
was  banished,  England,  Denmark  and  Holland  vied  with 
each  other  in  seeking  the  honour  of  aff"ording  him  an  asylum. 
The  seven  volumes  of  his  discourses  present  equally  fine 
proofs  of  invention,  as  of  arrangement  and  action.  In  him 
was  made  manifest  anew  how  much  an  extensive  theological 
knowledge,  when  its  results  are  applied  with  tact,  contributes 
to  the  effectiveness  of  preaching.  A  plastic  form  is  here 
combined  with  abundance  of  material,  and  if  the  orator  in 
some  passages  shows  that  he  has  taken  Basil  as  a  model,  he 
nevertheless  still  survives  Dubosc."  ^ 

A  suggestive  criticism  is  offered  by  Hering: 

"  His  practical  interest  is  above  all  directed  to  the 
moral  impression,  while  polemics  fall  into  the  background. 

1  OPT,  pp.  129-130.     See  also  HLH,  pp.  U7-149. 


OEATORS  AND  COURTIERS  173 

Although  for  this  purpose  he  is  helped  by  his  rich  culture, 
his  knowledge  of  men  and  of  the  world,  yet  he  stands 
behind  the  Catholics,  whom  casuistry  and  the  confessional 
gave  a  multitude  of  individual  applications,  in  their  ability 
to  deal  with  the  special  cases  and  circumstances ;  a  defect  of 
the  Protestant  preaching  of  the  time  generally."  ^ 

3.  A  still  more  famous  name  is  that  of  Jacques  Saurin 
(1677—1730),  on  whom  the  influence  of  the  great  Catholic 
preachers  is  evident.  While  Hering  regards  him  as  not 
the  equal  to  the  Catholic  orators,  although  greater  in 
respect  of  his  evangelical  message,  Vinet  asserts  that  not 
only  is  he  the  greatest  of  the  Protestant  preachers,  but  he 
is  even  not  inferior  to  any  of  the  Catholic  masters  of  the 
pulpit.  He  was,  however,  an  unequal  preacher,  sometimes 
insipid,  prolix,  irrelevant,  but  often  and  quickly  he  soared 
from  these  lower  levels  of  thoughts  and  speech  into  the 
loftiest  heights  of  a  rare  eloquence,  sustained  by  a  genuine 
inspiration  of  "  living  faith  and  joyful  hope."  ^  An  illustra- 
tion of  his  style  may  be  given  from  a  sermon  on  The  Effect 
of  Passion  (1  Pet  2^). 

"  O  deplorable  state  of  man !  The  littleness  of  his  mind 
will  not  allow  him  to  contemplate  any  object  but  that  of 
his  passion,  while  it  is  present  to  his  senses;  it  will  not 
allow  him,  then,  to  recollect  the  motives,  the  great  motives, 
that  should  impel  him  to  his  duty ;  and  when  the  object  is 
absent,  not  being  able  to  offer  it  to  his  senses,  he  presents 
it  again  to  his  imagination  clothed  with  new  and  foreign 
charms,  deceitful  ideas  of  which  make  up  for  its  absence, 
and  excite  in  him  a  love  more  ardent,  than  that  of  actual 
possession,  when  he  felt  at  least  the  folly  and  vanity  of  it. 
0  horrid  war  of  the  passions  against  the  soul !  Shut  the 
door  of  your  closets  against  the  enchanted  object,  it  will 
enter  with  you.  Try  to  get  rid  of  it  by  traversing  plains, 
and  fields,  and  whole  countries ;  cleave  the  waves  of  the  sea, 
fly  on  the  wings  of  the  wind,  and  try  to  put  between  your- 
self and  your  enchantress  the  deep,  the  rolling  ocean,  she 
will  travel  with  you,  sail  with  you,  everywhere  haimt  you, 
because   wherever    you    go  you  wfll  carry    yourself,  and 

»HLH,  p.  149.  -OPT,  p.  131. 


174  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

within  you,  deep  in  your  imagination,  the  bewitching  image 
impressed."  Change  of  earthly  objects,  he  then  by  a  number 
of  illustrations  shews,  can  bring  no  satisfaction ;  and  hence 
his  conclusion : 

"  Let  us  shorten  our  labour.  Let  us  put  all  creatures 
into  one  class.  Let  us  cry '  vanity '  in  all.  If  we  determine 
to  pursue  new  objects,  let  us  choose  such  as  are  capable  of 
satisfying  us.  Let  us  not  seek  them  here  below.  They  are 
not  to  be  found  in  this  old  world,  which  God  has  cursed. 
They  are  in  the  '  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth.' "  ^ 


IL 

1.  While  the  preaching  of  the  Reformed  Church  in  the 
seventeenth  century  showed  the  influence  of  classical  cul- 
ture, yet  it  was  excelled  by  the  Roman  Catholic  pulpit 
oratory,  which  in  turn  soon  began  to  affect  the  style  of 
preaching  not  only  of  the  Protestants  of  France,  but  even  of 
Germany.^  The  French  language  is  marked  by  its  lucidity; 
the  French  people  possess  a  quahty  which  can  be  expressed 
only  by  their  own  word  esprit ;  quickness  of  feeling,  light- 
ness of  touch,  fineness  of  taste,  a  ready  wit,  vivid  imagina- 
tion, all  combined  to  produce  the  brilliance  of  the  classic 
orators.  In  their  art  they  were  under  the  influence  of 
ancient  models.  The  appeal  was  not  to  the  common  people, 
but  to  the  King  and  his  Court,  for  whom  preaching  was 
an  aesthetic  interest,,  The  King  chose  the  preachers  at 
Versailles,  and  rewarded  them  with  his  compliments ;  in 
the  correspondence  as  well  as  the  conversation  of  the  Court 
the  merits  of  the  orators  were  discussed.  We  should  do 
injustice  to  the  preachers  themselves,  however,  if  we  assumed 
that  the  favour  and  applause  of  the  King  and  Court  were 
all  that  they  sought  in  their  endeavours.  Doubtless  they 
hoped  and  strove  to  use  their  gifts  as  orators  for  the  higher 
end  of  influencing  the  King,  and  through  him  the  Court  and 
the  nation,  for  their  moral  and  religious  good.  A  minor 
motive  for  the  Catholic  orators  was  the  desire  to  excel  their 

1  CME  ix.  pp.  145-146. 

2  See  0-reat  French  Serinons,  ed.  byO'Mahony,  London,  1917. 


ORATOES  AND   COURTIERS  175 

Protestant  rivals  in  the  art  of  the  pulpit.  But  even  when 
we  have  tried  to  be  as  generous  in  our  judgment  of  their 
intentions  as  we  can,  we  are  forced  to  admit  that  there  was 
not  a  little  in  their  methods  which  now  offends.  In  their 
panegyrics  and  funeral  sermons  there  was  an  exaggerated 
patriotism ;  and  their  flattery  went  beyond  the  bounds  of 
good  taste,  and  sometimes  even  became  blasphemous.  This 
national  enthusiasm  was  allied  even  in  the  pulpit  with 
Roman  Catholic  fanaticism.  These  orators  provoked  and 
exulted  in  the  persecution  of  their  Protestant  fellow- 
countrymen.  They  all  approved  the  revocation  of  the 
Edict  of  Nantes,  and  rejoiced  in  any  humiliation  of  a 
Protestant  State.  Such  preaching  could  not  fail  to  be 
injurious  to  morality  as  well  as  religion,  and  its  influence 
did  not  retard,  but  rather  stimulated  the  process  of  national 
deterioration,  which  one  hundred  years  later  found  its  judg- 
ment in  the  French  Revolution.  But  with  "  the  wood,  hay, 
stubble,"  there  were  mingled  in  these  sermons  to  the  King 
and  his  Court  "  gold,  silver,  and  precious  stones."  Vices  were 
boldly  and  frankly  denounced ;  solemn  warnings  were  uttered 
against  piety  from  unworthy  motives.  The  duties  of  a  king 
even  were  openly  and  earnestly  declared.  But  such  is  the 
perversity  of  human  nature.  The  courtiers  gained  a  malici- 
ous pleasure  in  listening  to  exhortatiocs  addressed  to  their 
sovereign,  and  found  enjoyment  in  the  eloquent  denuncia- 
tion of  the  vices  which  they  had  no  intention  whatever  of 
abandoning.^ 

2.  While  a  statement  of  the  general  characteristics  of 
the  period  may  be  made,  yet  individual  differences  must 
be  recognised ;  and  each  of  the  preachers  must  be  separ- 
ately treated.  In  Jules  Mascaron  (1643—1703)  and 
Esprit  Fl^chier  (1632-1710)  the  art  of  the  orator  had 
not  yet  found  its  full  development.^  The  itinerant 
preacher,  Jacques  Bridaine  (died  1767),  excelled  the 
even  famous  preachers  in  his  avoidance  of  flattery,  and 
his  courage  in  exposing  sin  and  its  penalty.^  Fran<;ois 
de  Salignac  de  la  Mothe  Fenelon  (1651—1715)  stands 
1  See  HLH,  pp.  137-142.  ^  HLH,  p.  142.  «  OPT,  p.  132. 


176  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

apart,  more  attractive  in  personality,  if  less  oratorical 
in  style.  The  summit  of  the  eloquence  of  the  age  is 
reached  by  three  preachers,  Jacques  B^nigne  Bossuet 
(1627-1704),  the  Bishop  of  Nimes  and  Meaux,  Louis  de 
Bourdaloue  (1632-1704),  the  Jesuit  father,  and  a  little 
later  in  date  than  these  contemporaries,  Jean  Baptiste 
Massillon  (1663-1742),  an  Oratorian,  with  leanings  to 
the  Jesuits.^ 

3.  Bossuet  first  claims  notice.  (1)  He  was  in  his 
home  as  well  as  in  his  course  of  training  brought  under 
the  influence  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  their  thought  and 
language  greatly  and  lastingly  affected  his  preaching  more 
as  regards  the  style  than  the  contents.  Into  the  forms 
of  prophetic  speech  he  pours  his  own  ardour  and  imagina- 
tion. A  diligent  student  of  the  Fathers,  he  learned  much 
from  Augustine  and  Chrysostom.  The  third  factor  in  his 
development  as  a  preacher  was  humanism,  the  culture  of 
the  Eenaissance.  The  native  intensity  and  impetuosity 
of  his  personality  fused  all  these  elements  into  a  glowing 
mass,  which,  however,  shone  rather  than  warmed.^  Van 
Oosterzee  compares  him  to  "  a  broad  mountain  stream, 
which  with  thundering  roar  rushes  down  from  the  heights, 
and  carries  away  everything  which  would  offer  resistance."  ^ 
•  His  usual  method  of  preparation  was  to  make  a  rough 
draft  only,  and  to  leave  to  the  moment  the  filling  out  and 
shaping  of  his  sermon ;  a  proof  of  his  extraordinary  power 
as  a  speaker.  His  art  appears  more  fully  in  the  funeral 
orations,  which  he  afterwards  worked  over  with  great  care, 
now  holding  himself  in  and  then  letting  himself  go  as  his 
mastery  of  his  craft  required.  A  learned  theologian,  a 
vehement  controversialist,  a  consummate  courtier,  a  supreme 
orator,  his  is  not  the  eloquence  of  the  life  which  is  hid 
with  Christ  in  God.  Tested  by  this,  his  oratory  often 
sounds  hollow,  and  feels  cold.  (2)  His  funeral  sermon 
on  the  Death  of  the  Grande  Cond^  is  an  example  of  his 
use  of  the  pulpit  for  the  unstinted  praise  of  the  great,  and 

»  See  HLH,  pp.  142-147 ;  DHP,  ii.  pp.  82-117  ;  OPT,  pp.  131-134. 
«  See  HLH,  p.  143.  ^  OPT,  p.  131. 


ORATORS   AND   COURTIERS  177 

yet  in  the  following  passage  he  justifies  himself  for  so  doing 
with  masterly  skill. 

"  Let  us  try,  then,  to  forget  our  grief.  Here  an  object 
greater  and  worthier  of  this  pulpit  presents  itself  to  my 
mind ;  it  is  God,  who  makes  warriors  and  conquerors.  '  It 
is  Thou,'  said  David  unto  Him,  '  who  hast  trained  my  hand 
to  battle,  and  my  fingers  to  hold  the  sword.'  If  He  inspires 
courage,  no  less  is  He  the  bestower  of  other  good  qualities, 
both  of  heart  and  mind.  His  mighty  hand  is  the  source 
of  everything;  it  is  He  who  sends  from  heaven  generous 
sentiments,  wise  counsels  and  every  worthy  thought.  But 
He  wishes  us  to  know  how  to  distinguish  between  the  gifts 
He  abandons  to  His  enemies  and  those  He  reserves  for  His 
servants.  What  distinguishes  His  friends  from  all  others 
is  piety.  Until  this  gift  of  Heaven  has  been  received,  all 
others  not  only  are  as  naught,  but  even  bring  ruin  on  those 
who  are  endowed  with  them ;  without  this  inestimable  gift 
of  piety  what  would  the  Prince  de  Conde  have  been,  even 
with  his  great  heart  and  great  genius  ?  No,  my  brethren, 
if  piety  had  not,  as  it  were,  consecrated  his  other  virtues, 
these  princes  would  have  found  no  consolation  for  their 
grief,  nor  this  pontiff  any  confidence  in  his  prayers,  nor 
would  I  myself  utter  with  conviction  the  praises  which 
I  owe  to  so  great  a  man.  Let  us,  by  this  example,  then  set 
human  glory  at  naught;  let  us  destroy  the  idol  of  the 
ambitious,  that  it  might  fall  to  pieces  before  this  altar. 
Let  us  to-day  join  together  (for  with  a  subject  so  noble  we 
may  do  it)  all  the  qualities  of  a  superior  nature ;  and  for 
the  glory  of  truth,  let  us  demonstrate,  in  a  prince  admired 
of  the  universe,  that  what  makes  heroes,  that  what  carries 
to  the  highest  pitch  worldly  glory,  worth,  magnanimity, 
natural  goodness — all  attributes  of  the  heart;  vivacity, 
penetration,  grandeur  and  sublimity  of  genius — attributes 
of  the  mind ;  would  be  but  an  illusion  were  piety  not  a  part 
of  them — in  a  word,  that  piety  is  the  essence  of  the  man. 
It  is  this,  gentlemen,  which  you  will  see  in  the  for  ever 
memorable  life  of  the  most  high  and  mighty  Prince  Louis 
de  Bourbon,  Prince  de  Conde,  first  prince  of  the  blood."  ^ 

4.  It   was   in   1669   when   Bossuet   had  reached   the 
height  of  his  fame,  and  withdrew  from  Paris  to  his  diocese 
of   Condom,   that   the  Jesuit    father,   Bourdaloue,   by   his 
1  WGS  ii.  pp.  86-88. 


178  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

eloquence  captured  the  French  aristocracy.  At  six  in  the 
morning  servants  were  sent  to  secure  places  for  the  after- 
noon service.  His  sermons  were  taken  down  as  preached, 
and  were  published  without  his  authority.  He  died  before 
he  had  carried  out  his  intention  to  revise  them  for  pub- 
lication. For  thirty-four  years  he  held  his  audiences 
spellbound  whenever  he  opened  his  lips. 

(1)  "  Bourdaloue,"  says  Feug^re, "  addresses  himself  much 
more  to  the  reason  than  to  the  imagination  and  the  emotions. 
...  If  sometimes  his  tone  became  more  tender  or  more 
passionate,  these  are  exceptions  which  seem  unintended. 
One  could  even  say,  that  the  more  a  subject  lent  itself  to 
pathos,  the  more  was  Bourdaloue  on  his  guard  against  it."  ^ 
He  excelled  Bossuet  in  the  orderly  arrangement  and  the 
logical  cogency  of  his  sermons.  "  He  is — Sit  venia  verbo — as 
compared  with  this  royal  eagle,  as  the  royal  serpent  which 
with  velvet  coils  slowly  surrounds  the  object  of  its  prey, 
softly,  indeed,  but  in  such  a  way  that  the  captured  animal 
can  no  longer  escape.  He  convinces  you,  but — without 
carrying  you  with  him ;  through  the  intellect  he  seeks  the 
way  to  the  heart,  but  frequently  he  does  this  in  a  manner 
which  reminds  you  rather  of  the  accomplished  barrister 
than  of  the  preacher  pleading  with  unction  from  on 
high."  8 

His  expression  went  beyond  his  impression ;  and 
eloquence  tended  to  drop  to  rhetoric.  With  his  intel- 
lectual vigour  he  combined  moral  seriousness.  His 
training  as  a  Jesuit  in  casuistry  gave  him  masterly  skill 
in  dealing  with  moral  issues.  He  was  bold  enough  not 
only  to  depict  vices  generally,  but  to  denounce  the  evil 
customs  of  his  own  age.  He  held  up  the  Court  of  Herod 
as  a  mirror  in  which  the  Court  at  Versailles  might  see 
itself.     In  this  respect  he  recalls  Chrysostom.^ 

(2)  In  a  sermon  on  the  Passion  of  Jesus  Christ, 
Bourdaloue  expounds  1  Co  522-2*.  Jq  dealing  with  Christ 
Criuyified  the  potver  of  God,  he  thus  explains  that  death : 

*  Bowrdaloue,  Sa  Predication  et  son  temps,   Paris,  1888,  p.   64,   quoted 
HLH,  p.  144. 

»  OPT,  pp.  131-132.  »  See  HLH,  pp.  143-145. 


ORATORS   AND   COURTIERS  179 

"  He  died,  then,  only  because  He  willed  to  die  (Isa.  liii.  7), 
and  even  in  the  manner  He  willed  to  die.  And  this,  says 
St.  Augustine,  is  what  the  God-Man  alone  could  do ;  this  is 
what  shows  forth,  even  in  death,  the  sovereign  independence 
of  God.  It  is  hereon  I  base  another  proposition,  namely 
this,  that  the  Death  of  Jesus  Christ,  if  we  consider  it  closely, 
was  not  only  a  miracle,  but  the  most  singular  of  all  miracles. 
And  why  ?  Because,  instead  of  dying  as  other  men  die  out 
of  weakness,  out  of  violence,  out  of  necessity,  He  died  by 
the  effort  of  His  own  absolute  power ;  so  that  as  Son  of  God 
and  God  Himself,  He  never  exerted  that  absolute  power 
more  supremely  than  at  the  moment  in  which  He  consented 
that  His  most  blessed  soul  should  be  separated  from  His 
body.  And  for  this  theologians  give  two  reasons.  In  the 
first  place,  they  say,  Jesus  Christ  being  exempt  from  all  sin 
and  absolutely  impeccable,  He  could  not  but  be  naturally 
immortal ;  whence  it  follows  that  His  body  and  His  soul, 
which  were  united  hypostatically  with  the  Divinity,  could 
not  be  separated  from  each  other  but  by  a  miracle.  It  was, 
then,  of  necessity  that  Jesus  Christ  in  order  to  effect  this 
separation,  should,  so  to  speak,  do  violence  to  all  the  laws 
of  ordinary  providence,  and  that  He  should  employ  all  the 
power  which  God  had  given  Him  for  the  destruction  of  that 
beautiful  life  which,  although  human,  was  at  the  same  time 
the  life  of  a  God.  Secondly,  because  Jesus  Christ,  in  virtue 
of  His  Priesthood,  was  pre-eminently  the  High  Priest  of  the 
New  Law,  none  but  He  could  or  should  offer  to  God  the 
Sacrifice  for  the  redemption  of  the  world  and  immolate  the 
Victim  destined  for  that  Sacrifice.  Now,  this  Victim  was 
His  own  Body.  None  then  but  He  was  to  offer  this  Sacrifice, 
none  but  He  had  the  power  necessary  for  such  an  act.  The 
executioners  who  crucified  Him  were  indeed  the  ministers 
of  the  justice  of  God,  but  they  were  not  the  priests  who 
were  to  sacrifice  this  Victim  to  God.  For  this  a  High  Priest 
was  needed  who  should  be  holy,  innocent,  spotless,  separated 
from  sinners  and  endowed  with  characteristics  peculiar  to 
Himself  (Heb.  vii.  26-28)."  1 

5.  Thirty  years    elapsed    between   the   appearance  in 
Paris  as  preachers  of  Bourdaloue  and  Massillon.^ 

*■  Oreat  French  Servians,  pp.  10-12. 

'  Hering  refers  in  a  note  on  p.  145  to  a  monograph  by  Blainpigiion  in 
two  volumes.     Paris. 


180  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

(1)  As  a  boy  he  was  interested  in  pulpit  eloquence, 
and  attracted  attention  by  the  vivacity  with  which  he  was 
able  to  reproduce  a  sermon  he  had  heard.  The  oratory  of 
Bourdaloue  taught  him  to  correct  his  faults,  but  he  made 
no  man  his  model.  He  aimed,  not  at  the  oratory  of  the 
imagination  and  the  intellect,  but  the  eloquence  of  the 
heart.  He  impressed  by  his  seriousness  and  his  modesty. 
Less  majestic  than  Bossuet,  and  less  polished  than  Bourda- 
loue, he  showed  more  spiritual  unction  as,  like  Barnabas,  a 
son  of  consolation.  Yet  he  could  also  search  the  conscience 
of  his  hearers,  and  make  them  see  themselves  as  they  really 
were.  Thus  he  laboured  in  Paris  for  twenty  years.  Twice, 
in  1701  and  1704,  he  preached  to  the  Court  at  Versailles. 
He,  by  his  frank  and  bold  speech,  moved  even  the  king  to 
discontent  with  himself ;  but  what  does  discount  the  value 
of  the  fact  as  a  testimony  to  his  power  is  that  the  king 
was  growing  old,  and  was  under  the  influence  of  the 
bigoted  Madame  Maintenon.  In  the  funeral  sermon  for 
Louis  XIV.  he  allowed  himself  to  follow  the  fashion  of  the 
panegyric  without  the  restraint  which  might  have  been 
expected  from  him.  More  worthy  of  him,  however,  were 
the  fatherly  educative  counsels  which  he  addressed  to  the 
eighteen  years  old  king,  Louis  XV.,  in  Lent,  1718.  His 
addresses  as  bishop  to  the  clergy  of  his  diocese  show  him 
as  zealous  to  make  his  brethren  worthy  of  their  calling  in 
the  cure  of  souls.  Though  himself  a  preacher,  he  does  not 
give  any  prominence  to  the  duty  of  preaching. 

"  We  should  compare  him,"  says  Van  Oosterzee,  "  by 
preference,  not  to  a  brilliant  meteor,  but  to  a  moon  veiled 
with  fleecy  clouds,  which  sheds  a  kindly  light  over  a  wide 
prospect." 

He  adds  this  qualification  to  his  praise,  and  his  words  are 
worth  repeating,  as  they  point  to  the  common  defect  of 
the  French  pulpit  of  the  classic  period,  and  a  danger  which 
threatens  every  preacher : 

"  We  are  afraid  that  even  he  too  often  sought  to  recom- 
mend himself  to  the  refined  tastes  of  his  hearers,  rather 


ORATORS   AND   COURTIERS  181 

than  to  their  awakened  conscience,  and  that  here  too  the 
courtier  stood  only  too  often  in  the  way  of  the  orator,  and 
the  orator  in  that  of  the  preacher  of  the  Gospel  in  the 
proper  acceptation  of  the  term."  ^ 

(2)  However  doubtful  we  may  be  of  the  propriety  of 
using  the  pulpit  in  the  season  of  Lent  to  give  advice  to  a 
young  king  instead  of  preaching  Christ  Crucified,  and  of 
at  any  time  adopting  such  a  method  of  education,  yet  the 
content  and  spirit  of  the  counsels  are  admirable. 

"  Sire,  always  regard  war  as  the  greatest  scourge  with 
which  God  can  afflict  an  empire;  seek  to  disarm  rather 
than  to  conquer  your  enemies.  God  has  entrusted  to  you 
the  sword  only  for  the  safety  of  your  people,  and  not  for 
the  misfortune  of  your  neighbours.  The  empire  over  which 
heaven  has  set  you  is  vast  enough ;  be  more  zealous  to 
assuage  its  miseries  than  to  extend  its  borders ;  put  rather 
your  glory  in  redressing  the  misfortunes  of  past  wars  than 
in  undertaking  new  ones ;  render  your  reign  immortal  by 
the  happiness  of  your  people  more  than  by  the  number  of 
your  conquests ;  do  not  measure  the  justice  of  your  under- 
takings by  your  power,  and  do  not  forget  that  in  the  most 
righteous  wars,  victories  always  bring  after  them  as  great 
calamities  for  States  as  the  most  sanguinary  defeats."  ^ 

(3)  Characteristic  of  his  own  disposition  is  the  saying 
addressed  to  his  clergy  : 

"  It  is  not  always  the  great  talents  which  imply  in  us  the 
greatest  virtues.  They  make  us  more  useful  to  men,  but 
they  do  not  always  make  us  more  acceptable  to  God ;  they 
advance  his  work  in  others,  but  they  often  retard  it  in 
ourselves."  ^ 

His  description  of  the  restless  and  reckless  priest  is  true 
of  all  times  : 

"  They  undertake  everything.  All  that  has  the  appear- 
ance of  being  good  inspires  and  impels  them,  nothing 
appears  impossible  to  them,  and  nothing  seems  to  them  to 
be  in  the  place  where  it  should  be.     They  would  wish  to 

» OPT,  p.  132. 

2  Blampignon,  i.  p.  275,  quoted  in  HLH,  pp.  146-147. 

»  Op.  cit,  i.  125,  quoted  HLH,  p.  147. 


182  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

change  everything,  to  displace  everything.  They  begin  by 
putting  into  general  confusion  all  they  touch  under  the 
pretext  of  putting  it  again  in  order.  Eestless,  narrow,  rash, 
venturesome,  if  only  they  are  doing  something,  they  are 
pleased  with  themselves,  and  think  that  they  are  fulfilling 
all  righteousness.  They  rashly  hurl  themselves  against  the 
most  delicate  and  difficult  situations  which  deserve  to  be 
most  carefully  handled,  are  most  exposed  to  great  and  griev- 
ous consequences,  and  are  most  capable  even  of  baffling  the 
most  masterly  prudence  and  skill ;  and  when  they  have  got 
out  of  this  scrape  where  they  come  to  grief  and  offer  the 
public  a  spectacle  always  unbecoming  for  a  clergyman,  they 
go  with  the  same  foolhardiness  to  deal  with  some  other 
undertaking  which  offers  them  no  less  danger,  and  promises 
them  no  less  confusion."  ^ 

While  these  illustrations  reveal  to  us  the  man,  they 
do  not  show  us  the  preacher  when  he  most  moved  the 
hearts  of  men, 

(4)  The  concluding  passage  of  a  sermon  on  The  Woman 
that  was  a  Sinner  (Lk  7^^"^)  may  serve  as  an  example  of 
his  art  in  the  pulpit. 

"  By  her  sins  Mary  Magdalene  had  been  degraded  in  the 
eyes  of  men  ;  they  beheld  with  contempt  the  shame  and  the 
infamy  of  her  conduct,  and  the  Pharisee  is  even  astonished 
that  Jesus  Christ  should  condescend  to  suffer  her  at  His 
feet.  For  the  world  which  authorises  whatever  leads  to 
dissipation  never  fails  to  cover  dissipation  itself  with 
infamy ;  it  inspires  and  approves  all  the  passions,  yet  it 
always  blames  all  the  consequences  of  them ;  its  lascivious 
theatres  resound  with  extravagant  praises  of  profane  love, 
but  its  conversation  consists  only  of  biting  satires  upon 
those  who  yield  themselves  to  that  unfortunate  tendency ; 
it  praises  the  graces  and  charms  that  light  up  impure 
desires,  and  it  loads  you  with  shame  from  the  moment  that 
you  appear  inflamed  with  them.  Such  had  been  the  afflic- 
tions by  which  the  passions  and  the  debaucheries  of  our 
sinner  were  followed  ;  but  her  penance  restores  to  her  more 
honour  and  more  glory  than  had  been  taken  away  from  her 
by  the  infamy  of  her  past  life.  This  sinner,  so  despised  in 
the  world,  whose  name  was  not  mentioned  without  a  blush, 

^  Op.  dt.,  ii.  129,  quoted  HLH,  p.  147. 


ORATORS   AND   COURTIERS  183 

is  praised  by  Jesus  Christ  for  the  things  which  even  the 
world  considers  as  most  honourable,  for  generosity  of  senti- 
ments, kindness  of  heart,  and  the  fidelity  of  a  holy  love ; 
this  sinner,  whose  scandal  was  without  example  in  the  city, 
is  exalted  above  the  Pharisee ;  the  truth,  the  sincerity  of 
her  faith,  of  her  compunction,  of  her  love,  merits  at  once  the 
preference  over  a  superficial,  pharisaical  virtue  ;  this  woman, 
whose  name  was  concealed  as  if  unworthy  of  being  uttered, 
and  whose  only  appellation  is  that  of  her  crimes,  is  become 
the  glory  of  Christ  Jesus,  a  triumph  of  grace  and  an  honour 
to  the  Gospel."  ^ 

6.  The  personality  of  F^nelon,  as  revealed  in  his 
writings,  commands  our  affection  as  none  of  the  great 
orators  can  do. 

(1)  As  only  two  of  his  sermons  on  special  occasions 
have  been  preserved,  we  cannot  compare  him  with  them, 
or  estimate  what  he  was  capable  of  as  a  preacher. 
With  his  controversy  with  Bossuet  we  are  not  here  con- 
cerned ;  nor  yet  with  the  consequences  of  it  as  regards 
his  ecclesiastical  position.  The  doctrine  of  Quietism, 
which  he  defended,  may  be  illustrated  by  a  passage  from  a 
sermon  on  Simplicity  and  Greatness. 

"  If  we  desire  that  our  friends  be  simple  and  free  with  us, 
disencumbered  of  self  in  their  intimacy  with  us,  will  it  not 
please  God,  who  is  our  truest  friend,  that  we  should  sur- 
render our  souls  to  him,  without  fear  or  reserve,  in  that  holy 
and  sweet  communion  with  himself  which  he  allows  us? 
It  is  this  simplicity  which  is  the  perfection  of  the  true 
children  of  God.  This  is  the  end  that  we  must  have  in 
view,  and  to  which  we  must  be  continually  advancing.  This 
deliverance  of  the  soul  from  all  useless,  and  selfish,  and 
unquiet  cares,  brings  to  it  a  peace  and  freedom  that  are 
unspeakable ;  this  is  true  simplicity.  It  is  easy  to  perceive, 
at  the  first  glance,  how  glorious  it  is,  but  experience  alone 
can  make  us  comprehend  the  enlargement  of  heart  that  it 
produces.  We  are  then  like  a  child  in  the  arms  of  its 
parents, '  we  wish  nothing  more  ;  we  fear  nothing ' ;  we  yield 
ourselves  up  to  this  pure  attachment ;  we  are  not  anxious 
about  what  others  think  of  us ;  all  our  motions  are  free, 
graceful,  and  happy.     We  do  not  judge  ourselves,  and  we 

1  Great  French  Sermons,  pp.  220-221. 


184  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

do  not  fear  to  be  judged.  Let  us  strive  after  this  lovely 
simplicity;  let  us  seek  the  path  that  leads  to  it.  The 
farther  we  are  from  it,  the  more  we  must  hasten  our  steps 
towards  it.  Very  far  from  being  simple,  most  Christians  are 
not  even  sincere.  They  are  not  only  disingenuous,  but  they 
are  false,  and  they  dissemble  with  their  neighbour,  with  God, 
and  with  themselves.  They  practise  a  thousand  little  arts 
that  indirectly  distort  the  truth.  Alas !  every  man  is  a  liar ; 
those  even  who  are  naturally  upright,  sincere,  and  ingenu- 
ous, and  who  are  what  is  called  simple  and  natural,  still 
have  this  jealous  and  sensitive  reference  to  self  in  every- 
thing, which  secretly  nourishes  pride,  and  prevents  that  true 
simplicity,  which  is  the  renunciation  and  perfect  oblivion  of 
self."i 

Such  a  type  of  preaching  would  not  lend  itself  to  oratory. 
It  lacks  passion,  since  it  aims  at  self- repression,  and  the 
power  of  passion ;  to  its  sense  of  truth  the  art  of  oratory 
must  be  an  offence. 

(2)  F^nelon  is  of  greater  importance  for  our  present 
purpose  as  a  writer  on  homiletics  than  as  a  preacher.  In 
his  youth  he  wrote  his  Dialogues  concerning  Eloquence  in 
General ;  arid  particularly,  that  kind  which  is  Jit  for  the 
Pulpit,  and  later  he  returned  to  the  same  subject  in 
A  Letter  to  the  French  Academy,  concerning  Rhetoric^ 
Poetry,  History,  and  a  Comparison  between  the  Ancients 
and  Moderns.'^  One  passage,  giving  his  view  of  the  purpose 
and  the  method  of  eloquence  from  the  Letter,  may  be 
quoted. 

"  We  must  not  judge  so  unfavourably  of  eloquence  as  to 
reckon  it  only  a  frivolous  Art  that  a  declaimer  uses  to 
impose  on  the  weak  unagination  of  the  multitude  and 
to  serve  his  own  ends.  'Tis  a  very  serious  Art ;  designed 
to  instruct  people ;  suppress  their  passions,  and  reform  their 
manners  ;  to  support  the  laws ;  direct  public  Councils  ;  and 
to  make  Men  good  and  happy.  The  more  pains  a  haranguer 
takes  to  dazzle  me  by  the  artifices  of  his  discourse,  the  more 
I  should  despise  his  vanity.     His  eagerness  to  display  his 

1  CME  vi.  pp.  111-112. 

-  A  translation  of  both  works  was  made  in  1722  by  William  Stevenson, 
M.A.,  and  published  in  London,  1722 ;  Glasgow,  1750. 


ORATOKS  AND  COURTIERS  185 

wit  would  in  my  judgment  render  him  unworthy  of  the 
least  admiration.  I  love  a  serious  preacher,  who  speaks  for 
my  sake,  and  not  for  his  own ;  who  seeks  my  salvation,  and 
not  his  own  vainglory.  He  best  deserves  to  be  heard  who 
uses  speech  only  to  clothe  his  thoughts,  and  his  thoughts 
only  to  promote  truth  and  virtue.  Nothing  is  more 
despicable  than  a  professed  declaimer,  who  retails  his 
discourses  as  a  quack  does  his  medicines."  ^ 

In  dealing  with  poetry  he  expresses  his  preference  for 
simplicity  in  style. 

"  There's  much  gained  by  losing  all  superfluous  ornaments, 
and  confining  ourselves  to  such  beauties  as  are  simple,  easy, 
clear,  and  seemingly  negligent.  In  poetry,  as  well  as  in 
architecture,  all  the  necessary  parts  should  be  turned  into 
natural  ornaments.  But  that  which  serves  merely  as  an 
ornament  is  superfluous ;  lay  it  aside ;  there  will  be  nothing 
wanting ;  vanity  is  the  only  sufferer  by  the  loss.  An  author 
that  has  too  much  wit,  and  will  always  show  it,  wearies  and 
exhausts  mine.  I  don't  desire  so  very  much.  ...  So  many 
flashes  dazzle  me.  I  love  a  gentle  light  that  refreshes  my 
weak  eyes.  I  choose  an  agreeable  poet  that  adapts  himself 
to  common  capacities ;  who  does  everything  for  their  sakes ; 
and  nothing  for  his  own."  ^ 

It  is  a  surprise  to  find  that  in  his  Dialogues  he 
advocates  the  analytic  homily  rather  than  the  synthetic 
sermon. 

"  The  further  I  enquire  into  this  matter,  the  more  I'm 
convinced  that  the  ancient  form  of  sermons  was  the  most 
perfect.  The  primitive  pastors  were  great  men ;  they  were 
not  only  very  holy,  but  they  had  a  complete  clear  knowledge 
of  religion,  and  of  the  best  way  to  persuade  men  of  its  truth, 
and  they  took  care  to  regulate  all  the  circumstances  of  it. 
There's  a  great  deal  of  wisdom  hidden  under  this  air  of 
simplicity,  and  we  ought  not  to  believe  that  a  better  method 
could  have  been  afterwards  found  out."  * 

This  conclusion  which  cannot  claim  assent,  must  not 

hide  from  us  the  great  value  of  his  discussion  of  the  subject. 

7.  The  Eoman  Catholic  and  the  Reformer  pulpit  of 

^  Pp.  229-230  of  the  translation  mentioned  in  previous  note. 
»76i<f.,  pp.  254-255.  »P.  177. 


186  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

France,  because  subject  to  the  same  conditions,  display 
similar  characteristics.  There  is  not  in  the  Protestant 
preachers  the  same  glow  of  religious  feeling  as  at  the 
Reformation.  Without  abandonment  of  the  Calvinistic 
theology,  there  is  a  less  vital  relation  to  it.  Without 
rationalism,  there  is  a  tendency  to  rationalising,  and  the 
ethical  interest  becomes  more  prominent  than  the  experi- 
mental testimony.  While  it  might  appear  as  if  the  arts 
of  oratory  were  more  in  keeping  with  the  splendour  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  ritual  than  the  simplicity  of  the  Protestant 
message,  yet,  divided  as  they  were  from  most  of  their 
countrymen  in  matters  of  faith,  these  Reformed  preachers 
remained  Frenchmen,  subject  to  the  same  literary  influences. 
In  their  controversy  with  Roman  Catholicism  and  their 
defence  of  their  own  creed,  they  had  to  learn  from  the 
enemy,  and  to  acquire  the  same  arts  of  persuasion  as  their 
pulpit  rivals.  The  results,  religious  and  moral,  of  this 
classic  period  of  the  French  pulpit  bring  home  the  convic- 
tion that  the  art  of  oratory  as  savouring  too  much  of  "  the 
wisdom  of  the  world"  may  often  be  a  hindrance  rather 
than  a  help  to  "  the  foolishness  of  preaching,"  ^  which  it 
has  pleased  God  to  use  for  the  salvation  of  meu,  for  the 
end  may  be  forgotten  in  the  means.  When  oratory  is 
subordinate  to  "  the  holy  enthusiasm  "  of  the  Spirit-filled 
believer,  then  it  may  become  the  eloquence  which  touches 
hearts  and  changes  lives. 

It  must  be  added,  however,  that  the  resounding  fame 
of  the  French  preaching  was  carried  into  other  lands,  and 
there  exercised  a  wholesome  influence  on  the  form  of  the 
sermon  and  in  raising  the  standard  of  taste.  In  preachers 
of  the  nineteenth  century,  even  in  Germany,  such  as 
Theremin  and  Frederick  William  Krummacher  that 
influence  may  still  be  traced.  The  synthetic  type  of 
sermon  supplanted  the  analytic,  and  the  attachment  to  the 
Holy  Scriptures  was  replaced  by  a  closer  contact  with 
current  interests  in  the  subjects  chosen. 
»  See  1  Co  1 18-36. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

PIETISTS,  RATIONALISTS  AND  MEDIATORS. 

I. 

1.  In  a  previous  chapter  the  decadence  of  the  German 
pulpit  after  the  great  Eeformation  period  was  described 
and  reference  was  by  anticipation  made  to  the  man,  through 
whom  the  Spirit  of  God  came  to  breathe  life  "  in  the  Valley 
of  the  dry  bones."  ^ 

(1)  "It  has  sometimes  been  said,"  says  Ker,  "  that  Spener 
was  the  reformer  of  the  life  of  the  German  church,  as  Luther 
was  the  reformer  of  its  doctrine.  This  may  place  him  too 
high,  but  it  is  certain  that  he  was  the  most  remarkable 
theological  figure  in  Germany  during  the  seventeenth 
century,  and  that  he  began  a  movement  in  the  German 
Church  which  long  survived  him,  and  which  exercises  an 
effect  even  on  our  country  and  our  time."  ^  "  Through 
Philipp  Jacob  Spener  (1635-1705)  and  August  Hermann 
Francke  (1663-1727),"  says  Hering,  "Pietism  gained  the 
importance  of  a  religious  appearance,  which  by  its  intensive 
insistence  on  the  vitality  of  faith,  on  the  new  birth  and  the 
Christian  passion  for  consecration,  rose  far  above  the 
orthodoxy  of  the  17th  century."^  "Spener,"  says  Van 
Gosterzee,  "did  succeed  in  recalling  to  life  the  spirit 
of  Luther  and  Arndt  in  many  a  pulpit,  and  in  making 
the  preaching  a  powerful  embodiment  of  the  theologia 
regenitorum."  * 

(2)  The  deep  piety  which  he  afterwards  showed  and 
preached  was  fostered  in  him  by  godly  parents,  by 
familiarity  with  the  Bible,  and  devout  literature,  such  as 
Arndt's  Tnte  Christianity  and  some  of  Baxter's  writings. 

1  Ezk  37^-".  "  KPH,  p.  183  ;  see  pp.  183-198. 

3  HLH,  p.  151  ;  see  pp.  1.'>1-158.  *  OPT,  pp.  121-122. 

187 


188  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

The  life  and  work  of  the  Eefoimed  Church  in  Geneva, 
where  he  studied  for  a  year,  made  a  deep  impression  on 
him.  "  He  was  also  moved  by  the  fiery  preaching  of 
Labadie,  so  different  from  the  stiff  and  formal  methods 
which  then  prevailed  in  Germany."  ^  On  his  return  to 
Germany,  his  promotion  in  the  Church  was  rapid.  His 
influence  spread  over  the  whole  of  Germany.  His  labours 
were  almost  incredible.  He  excited  violent  antagonism 
no  less  than  secured  passionate  attachment. 

(3)  In  his  Pia  Desideria,  or  Pious  Wishes,  his  position 
is  most  briefly  defined. 

"(1)  The  larger  circulation  of  the  Word  of  God,  and 
private  meetings  of  Christians  for  the  study  of  it.  (2)  The 
diligent  exercise  of  the  Christian  priesthood — i.e.,  the 
co-operation  of  the  members  with  the  minister  for  prayer 
and  edification.  (3)  The  earnest  conviction  that  knowledge 
is  not  enough  in  Christianity,  and  that  we  must  also  have 
life  and  action.  (4)  A  right  bearing  towards  unbelievers, 
so  as  to  carry  on  discussion  with  heart-felt  love,  and  to  seek 
not  merely  to  answer  them  but  to  gain  them  and  do  them 
good.  (5)  Such  a  course  of  theolfigical  training  as  will  make 
students  feel  that  they  should  progress  in  heart  and  life  as 
much  as  in  learning.  (6)  A  new  way  of  preaching,  in 
which  the  great  aim  will  be  to  show  that  Christianity 
consists  in  the  inner  or  new  man,  whose  soul  is  found  in 
faith,  with  the  fruits  of  a  good  life  as  the  results."  ^ 

(4)  While  devoted  to  Luther,  and  desiring  in  all  things 
to  be  Lutheran  in  his  theology,  his  emphasis  is  other  than 
Luther's. 

"Like  Luther  he  preaches  the  Gospel  as  a  message  of 
grace ;  but  he  more  than  the  other  emphasises  the  import- 
ance of  making  with  the  benefit  of  redemption  and  the 
consolation  of  faith  a  proper  impression  on  the  heart,  of 
touching  the  conscience  and  commending  the  following  of 
Jesus.  If  Luther's  preaching  of  faith  is  a  restoration,  a 
comfort  of  the  frightened  conscience  by  the  grace  of  for- 

*  KHP,  p.  187.     Ker  in  a  note  on  p.  199  gives  an  account  of  Jean  de 
Labadie. 

2  Idem,  pp.  189-190. 


PIETISTS,   RATIONALISTS  AND   MEDIATORS     189 

giveness,  Spener's  ultimate  object  is  consecration  with  the 
warnings,  characteristic  of  pietism,  against  false  comfort 
from  grace ;  and  in  the  acuteness  and  purity  of  the  moral 
judgment  and  sentiment,  the  knowledge  of  the  heart,  and 
the  Christian  wisdom  of  life,  in  the  caution  with  which  he 
pursues  that  task  is  to  be  found  the  great  and  good  part  of 
his  preaching.  This  its  essential  tendency,  when  one  looks 
at  it  as  a  whole,  throws  into  such  predominance  the  preach- 
ing of  penitence  and  consecration  rather  than  the  testimony 
of  faith,  and  gives  such  prominence  to  the  demand  for 
conversion  and  the  new  birth,  that  in  this  already  one 
becomes  aware  of  the  ditference  between  him  and  Luther ; 
and  that  not  the  less  on  account  of  the  difference  which 
separates  him  from  later  pietism.  He  at  least  did  not  wish 
to  give  absolutely  an  affirmative  answer  to  the  question 
whether  it  is  necessary  to  know  the  time  and  hour  of  one's 
conversion."^  In  him  the  emphasis  on  subjective  ex- 
perience is  not  yet  exaggerated. 

To  produce  the  inward  change  of  contrition,  conver- 
sion, and  consecration  was  the  object  of  his  preaching. 
With  a  view  to  the  last  he  dealt  often  with  the  moral 
duties  of  the  Christian,  but  never  as  a  moralist  merely. 

(5)  Not  only  did  he  always  seek  the  contents  and  the 
warrant  of  his  message  in  the  Holy  Scriptures,  but  it  was 
no  less  the  aim  of  his  preaching  to  make  the  Bible  familiar 
to,  and  so  a  dominant  influence  in  the  life  of  the  Christian 
people.  He  chafed  under  the  limitation  imposed  by  the 
prescribed  selection  of  passages  for  use  in  public  worship, 
as  forbidding  his  use  of  the  whole  Bible,  but  especially  as 
not  giving  adequate  opportunity  for  dealing  with  matters 
so  important  as  the  new  birth.  He  tried  to  get  over  this 
difficulty  in  two  ways.  He  seized  on  some  aspect  of  a 
Gospel  narrative,  which  served  his  particular  purpose,  even 
if  it  were  in  itself  quite  subordinate,  and  made  that  his 
sole  subject ;  or  he  made  use  of  the  introduction  to 
explain  other  passages,  even  in  a  course  of  sermons  a  whole 
epistle,  regardless  of  the  abandonment  of  the  unity  of  the 
sermon  which  this  involved.  When  a  passage  was  suitable, 
he  would  give  a  practical  exegesis  of  it,  dwelling  even  on 

1  HLH,  pp.  152-153. 


190  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

the  explanation  of  single  words  according  to  the  original 
text. 

(6)  How  little  importance  he  attached  to  homiletic 
theory  his  own  confession  shows.  "  From  the  time  on- 
wards, when  I  had  learned  to  grasp  in  some  measure  the 
realia  I  set  aside  all  the  technica  and  oratoria  prcecepta  so 
that  I  scarcely  have  any  more  remembrance  of  all  such 
artificialities.  .  .  .  The  matter  must  always  give  me  the 
method,  and  this  so  to  speak  changes  always  as  the 
materials  differ."  ^  In  practice,  however,  his  sermons 
usually  assumed  the  same  structure.  An  introduction 
(sometimes  even  two,  a  general  and  a  special)  was  followed 
by  the  statement  of  the  subject.  An  exposition  of  the 
passage  led  up  to  the  chief  doctrine  and  the  practical 
lessons.  Lastly  came  the  application  in  warning  or 
comfort.  The  sermon  closed  with  a  long  prayer.  He 
was  prolix,  unable  on  his  own  testimony  to  be  brief,  often 
preaching  for  two  hours.  There  was  no  brilliance,  nor 
poetry,  nor  passion ;  but  he  held  his  audiences  by  his 
sincerity  and  earnestness,  the  freshness  of  the  truth  he 
presented,  and  the  variety  of  his  use  of  the  Holy  Scriptures^ 
His  practice  was  to  write  out  his  sermons  carefully ;  after 
only  three  readings  his  excellent  memory  enabled  him  to 
deliver  almost  exactly  what  he  had  written  without  the 
use  of  any  notes.  While  he  was  ready  to  take  up  into  his 
sermon  thoughts  which  came  to  him  in  the  pulpit,  he 
inserted  them  afterwards  into  his  manuscript.  He  had  a 
distrust  of  extempore  preaching,  which  he  had  himself 
tried  for  a  time. 

(7)  Hering  shows  the  artificiality  and  prolixity  of  his 
sermons  by  giving  an  account  of  a  sermon  on  Fidelity  in 
the  Preacher's  Office,  based  on  Jn  IG^-^^^ 

"  In  the  introduction  he  starts  from  the  spiritual  character 
of  the  Kingdom  of  Christ  according  to  John  18^^,  As  all 
its  members  are  spiritual,  therefore  this  Word  does  not 
belong  only  to  the  preachers,  but  they  must  in  a  special 

1  Theol.  Bed.  iv.  p.  228.     Quoted  HLH,  p.  156. 

2  HLH,  pp.  156-157. 


PIETISTS,   RATIONALISTS  AND   MEDIATORS      191 

sense  be  spirituals,^  who  have  still  an  advantage  in  ministerial 
arrangements.  Now  comes  the  theme ;  the  official  duty  and 
fidelity  of  the  teachers  and  preachers,  Hymn  and  Prayer — 
The  Explanation  of  the  Gospel ;  I.  the  foundation,  it  is  an 
office  of  the  spirit,  2  Cor.  3^.  Sp.  explains  briefly  the 
statements  of  the  passage  regarding  the  Spirit,  His  proces- 
sion, His  connection  with  the  work  of  Christ  (John  7^®). 
His  working  (vv.^-  ^^) ;  II.  the  duties :  1,  to  teach  (to  lead 
into  all  truth) ;  2,  to  punish  (to  convince  inwardly) ;  3,  to 
comfort;  4,  good  and  holy  example:  III.  the  fruit:  1,  from 
the  side  of  God,  that  Christ  is  thereby  glorified ;  2,  from  the 
side  of  man ;  to  be  led  into  all  truth  and  then  to  lead  others 
into  it.  (Now  Sp.  weaves  in  as  well  a  similar  exposition 
according  to  John  10) — The 'main  doctrine '  considers  the 
official  duty  and  fidelity  of  the  preacher.  I.  The  foundation 
of  the  fidelity  consists — 1,  in  this,  that  the  clerical  office  is  not 
a  human  office,  but  an  office  of  the  Holy  Ghost ;  it  has  to  do 
with  the  Word  of  God,  which  comes  from  the  Spirit,  and  its 
living  recognition,  which  only  the  Spirit  of  God  can  give ; 
also  all  the  gifts  of  the  preacher's  office  spring  from  the  Holy 
Ghost;  accordingly  the  person  who  fulfils  the  office  must 
have  the  Spirit  dwelling  in  him ;  lastly,  it  belongs  to  the 
office  of  the  Spirit,  that  it  is  He  who  calls  thereto ;  2,  the 
call  does  not  always  come  immediately  from  God,  but  also 
through  men  ;  but  not  without  the  inner  call.  This  call  is 
a  foundation  of  fidelity.  II.  As  regards  the  duties,  they 
demand — 1,  first  of  all  generally  a  consciousness  of  being 
Christ's  servant  and  steward  of  his  mysteries ;  2,  the  special 
duties,  to  teach,  to  warn,  to  punish,  i.e.,  powerfully  to  con- 
vince, to  comfort ;  also  to  dispense  rightly  the  seals  of  the 
Word,  the  Sacraments;  to  present  to  the  congregation  a 
good  example ;  to  follow  the  individual  with  care  for  his 
souL  III.  The  Fruit :  1,  God's  Honour ;  2,  the  blessedness 
of  the  hearers  and  the  preachers  themselves.  IV.  The  Means 
of  this  fidelity :  1,  generally  God's  word ;  2,  witnessing  holy 
baptism ;  3,  the  Holy  Supper ;  4,  Prayer ;  5,  the  Cross. 
Special  Means :  diligent  consideration  of  the  heavy  responsi- 
bilities, as  of  the  splendid  promises.  V.  Only  two  hindrances 
to  fidelity  here :  fleshly  wisdom  and  the  love  of  the  world, — 
Thereon  admonition,  consolation,  and  closing  prayer." 

Long  as  this  summary  is,  it  is  worth  quoting,  as  it  not 

^  The  German  word  for  a  clergyman  or  minister  is  a  spiritual ;  there  is 
here  a  play  on  the  word. 


192  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

only  shows  us  the  method  of  the  preacher,  but  also  his 
motives,  his  purposes,  and  the  manner  of  his  fulfilment  of 
his  calling. 

2.  Next  to  Spener  as  a  leader  in  the  movement  of 
Pietism  stands  August  Hermann  Francke  (1663—1727). 

(1)  "In  point  of  form,"  says  Van  Oosterzee,  "  Francke 
stood  above  Spener ;  as  regards  spirit  and  depth  not  below 
him;  and,  though  Francke's  sermons  were  a  little  longer 
than  those  ordinarily  listened  to,  they  did  not  fail  to  hold 
captive  a  numerous  audience.  Like  his  predecessor,  he  was 
specially  concerned  about  the  application,  and  for  the  defects 
which,  as  judged  by  the  standard  of  later  times,  might 
perhaps  be  discovered  in  the  homilete,  amends  were  made 
by  the  excellence  of  the  preacher."  ^ 

Although  he  used  none  of  the  arts  of  the  orator,  he 
had  a  natural  eloquence  which  made  a  deep  impression. 
WhUe  his  early  ambition  to  be  a  learned  man  was  lost  in 
his  aspiration  to  be  wholly  surrendered  to  God,  he  made 
good  use  of  his  learning  in  expounding  the  Scriptures ;  but 
unlike  Spener  he  wove  his  exposition  of  the  passage  into 
his  development  of  his  theme.  In  opposition  to  orthodoxy, 
but  with  Spener's  approval,  his  explanation  of  words,  based 
on  a  study  of  the  original  languages,  prepared  the  way  for 
a  revision  of  Luther's  translation.  In  him  scholarship  was 
allied  not  with  piety  only,  but  also  with  philanthropy. 
He  founded  the  Orphan  House  at  Halle,  where  he  was 
both  a  professor  at  the  university  and  the  minister  of  a 
town  church. 

"  He  also  set  up,"  says  Ker,  "  a  great  Apothecary  Insti- 
tute for  supplying  medicine  and  medical  advice,  and  an 
establishment  for  printing  the  Bible  in  different  languages, 
and  other  books  for  the  people.  These  buildings  still  excite 
the  wonder  of  everyone  who  visits  Halle,  and  the  remarkable 
little  book  in  which  he  tells  how  they  were  raised.  The  Foot- 
steps of  Ood  in  the  Building  of  the  Orphan  House  at  Halle, 
may  well  be  reckoned  among  the  classics  of  Christian  faith."  ^ 

1  OPT,  p.  122.     See  also  HLH,  pp.  158-159,  and  KHP,  pp.  201-207. 
«  KHP,  pp.  204-205. 


PIETISTS,   RATIONALISTS  AND   MEDIATORS      193 

(2)  These  wider  interests  influenced  his  preaching.  He 
preached  on  the  care  of  the  poor.  He  was  one  of  the 
foremost  advocates  of  the  Danish  mission  in  Tranquebar. 
In  this  respect  he  was  in  advance  both  of  Luther  and 
Spener.  By  his  presence  and  influence  the  university 
became  a  fountain  of  living  truth  and  grace  for  all  Germany. 
The  number  of  theological  students  rose  to  twelve  hundred, 
and  they  perpetuated  and  diffused  their  teacher's  life  and 
work  wherever  they  went  as  pastors.  The  journeys  which 
for  the  sake  of  his  health  he  had  to  make  were  used  by 
him  to  secure  adherents,  and  to  conciliate  opponents  of  the 
movement.  At  his  death,  worn  out  with  his  labours,  it 
seemed  as  if  a  spring-time  which  would  pass  into  a  summer 
of  religious  revival  had  come  to  Germany ;  but  the  move- 
ment proved  less  enduring  than  might  have  been  hoped. 

(3)  Before  glancing  at  the  reasons  for  this  disappoint- 
ment of  hopes,  a  sketch  by  Ker  of  one  of  Francke's  sermons 
may  be  given,  which  will  justify  the  statement  of  his 
superiority  to  Spener  as  regards  form. 

"Luke  viii.  4-16. — The  Parable  of  the  Sower.  Intro- 
duction ;  Not  enough  to  hear  the  word  of  God,  we  must  take 
heed  of  what  and  how  we  hear,  and  ask  if  we  are  bearing 
fruit  from  it.  Theme  stated ;  How  are  we  to  act  so  that  the 
Word  of  God  may  come  to  a  true,  ripe,  and  rich  fruit. 
Short  prayer  hearing  on  the  subject.  I.  A  man  must  learn  to 
know  the  right  seed,  and  that  by  looking  to  the  Good  Sower, 
Jesus  Christ.  It  is  in  His  Word,  the  Word  of  God,  specially 
the  Gospel  Word.  '  Thy  sins  are  forgiven  Thee.'  This  is 
the  beautiful  and  precious  little  seed  which  when  falling 
into  the  sinner's  heart  brings  the  sweet  and  joyful  message 
of  grace,  and  springs  up  in  the  soul  as  righteousness  and 
peace  and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost.  We  also  know  the  right 
seed  by  its  power.  Man's  seed  cannot  overcome  sin  or  fill 
the  heart ;  power  comes  only  from  Christ's  hand.  II.  A  man 
must  see  that  the  field  is  prepared.  Here  the  husbandman 
may  be  taken  for  a  copy,  and  the  parable  followed.  (1)  The 
heart  must  be  free  from  the  hard  wayside  surface;  the 
thinking,  speaking,  or  doing  of  evil  makes  the  ground  so 
hard  that  the  seed  cannot  enter ;  there  must  come  the  plough 
of  the  law,  the  stem  plough  of  Sinai.     (2)  The  heart  must 


194  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

be  freed  from  the  rock  below  the  surface.  The  understand- 
ing often  takes  the  seed  and  talks  of  it ;  the  fancy  takes  it 
and  is  pleased  with  it ;  while  the  heart  beneath  is  rocky  and 
callous.  The  heart  must  be  broken — a  contrite  heart.  The 
rock  must  be  pierced.  We  need  repentance  to  open  it  for 
the  seed,  and  for  this  we  must  plead  with  God  who  alone 
can  take  away  the  hard  and  stony  heart.  (3)  The  heart 
must  be  free  from  thorns  and  thistles,  i.e.,  the  worldly  mind, 
the  love  of  worldly  pleasures,  the  anxiety  of  worldly  cares, 
which  deprive  the  seed  of  room  for  growth.  Therefore  pray 
the  Lord  that  He  may  tear  out  such  thorns  and  thistles, 
clearing  the  field  for  the  precious  seed.  III.  A  man  must 
work  and  wait  for  the  seed  to  grow.  Here,  again,  the 
husbandman  is  our  example  with  his  harrows  and  his  roller 
waiting  through  weeks  and  months  in  sunshine  and  rain,  in 
drought  and  frost,  in  weariness  and  fainting  of  heart,  till  the 
grain  is  ripe.  Therefore  (1)  the  Word  must  be  kept  in  the 
heart,  not  in  the  memory  only,  hidden  there  and  pondered. 
Parents,  hide  the  word  in  your  children's  hearts.  (2)  It 
must  be  commended  in  faith  and  prayer  to  God,  who  is  the 
God  of  the  harvest,  of  the  early  and  latter  rain.  (3)  It  must 
be  waited  for.  It  does  not  grow  in  a  day,  at  least  in  its 
fulness.  It  needs  the  cross,  and  often  many  crosses  to  drive 
it  in  and  cover  it  up.  (Then  follow  words  of  sorrow  for  the 
small  spiritual  harvest  in  Germany  after  so  many  years  of 
waiting,  and  the  sermon  closes  with  a  suitable  prayer.)"  ^ 

3.  With  two  such  leaders  it  is  surprising  that  pietism 
did  not  stay  the  full  tide  of  rationalism  in  Germany.  Ker 
suggests  three  reasons  for  the  failure  of  pietism.  (1)  Its 
intellectual  interest  was  too  narrow,  being  focused  almost 
entirely  on  the  inner  Christian  life,  and  it  neglected  the 
art  of  popular  effective  speech.  (2)  It  was  too  subjective 
and  introspective,  and  the  spiritual  experiences  so  observed 
were  reported  in  a  language  which,  real  as  long  as  emotion 
was  intense,  became  affected  when  feeling  had  subsided. 
(3)  While  at  the  beginning,  in  Halle  especially,  there  was 
considerable  activity  directed  outwards,  the  adherents  of 
the  movement  afterwards  and  elsewhere  tended  to  separa- 
tion, to  the  formation  of  small  self-righteous  and  self- 
satisfied  societies  which  assumed  a  censorious  and 
»  KHP,  pp.  219-221. 


PIETISTS,   KATIONALISTS  AND   MEDIATORS       195 

uncharitable  attitude  to  the  world  around.^  While  this 
judgment  must  be  passed  on  the  movement  as  a  whole, 
what  was  best  in  it  was  continued  in  two  notable  men, 
Johann  Albrecht  Bengel  (1687-1752)  and  Count  Nikolaus 
Ludwig  von  Zinzendorf  (1700-1760). 

"  These  are  the  two  offshoots  from  the  Pietism  of  Spener 
and  Francke,"  says  Ker, "  which  gave  it  a  permanent  interest 
and  influence — the  school  of  Bengel  led  to  a  deeper  and 
more  comprehensive  study  of  the  Bible,  and  the  school  of 
Zinzendorf  and  the  Moravian  Brethren  transformed  the 
ecclesiolce  of  Spener  into  an  ecdesia  that  exercised  an  import- 
ant influence  on  the  Church  and  the  World."  ^ 

4.  With  the  great  work  of  Bengel  as  an  expositor  of 
Scripture  in  his  famous  Gnomon  and  other  books,  we  are 
not  at  present  concerned ;  but  only  with  him  as  a  preacher. 

(1)  "  His  preaching  was  thoroughly  evangelical,  though 
he  did  not  dwell  upon  conversion  as  constantly  as  did  the 
Pietists.  'That  doctrine,'  he  says,  'is  very  important;  it  ia 
the  finger-hand  of  the  clock,  but  we  must  also  remember  the 
round  dial-plate — all  duties  in  their  turn.'  His  preaching 
was  also  more  expository  than  that  of  the  body  of  Pietists, 
and  had  therefore  more  of  the  breadth  and  variety  of  Scrip- 
ture. His  weakness,  if  we  can  call  it  so,  was  that  he  dealt 
rather  frequently  with  prophetical  chronology.  He  fixed, 
e.g.,  upon  1836  as  the  year  when  a  great  catastrophe  would 
befall  the  Kingdom  of  evil — a  catastrophe  still  delayed."  ^ 

(2)  More  important  still  as  a  preacher,  but  dependent 
on  Bengel  as  his  teacher,  although  more  potently  influenced 
even  by  Bohme,  was  Friederich  Christoph  Oetinger  (1702— 
1765),  who  may  be  described  as  a  Christian  theosophist. 
Although  he  indulged  in  speculation  even  in  the  pulpit,  yet 
he  knew  how  to  make  his  speech  popular,  and  far  and  wide 
quickened  religious  thought  and  life.  For  his  thinking  was 
attached  very  closely  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  not  less 
decisive  for  his  language  were  the  sacred  writings.  He 
was  a  decided  opponent  of  the  rationalising  of  his  time. 

»  KHP,  pp.  210-217.  *  KHP,  pp.  236-237. 

•  KHP,  p.  228  ;  see  pp.  225-229.     HLH,  pp.  173-174. 


196  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Bengel  and  Oetinger  were  the  dominant  influences  in  the 
Wurtemberg  type  of  pietism — which  did  not  form  a  sepa- 
rate community,  but  like  a  leaven  pervaded  the  whole 
people.  The  ideas  of  Oetinger  were  carried  further  by 
Phihpp  Matthaus  Hahn  (1739-1790),  who  developed  a 
scriptural  and  yet  speculative  Christology  in  representing 
the  reign  of  Christ  as  a  new  creation,  the  glory  of  which 
should  far  exceed  that  of  the  thousand  years'  reign.  In 
M.  F.  Christoph  Steinhofer  (1706-1761)  the  influence  of 
Bengel  combined  with  that  of  Zinzendorf  to  form  a  person- 
ality full  of  unction  as  a  preacher.^  The  influence  of  this 
pietism  has  continued  in  Wurtemberg  to  the  present  day, 
where,  besides  attendance  at  the  ordinary  church  services, 
fellowship  meetings  are  used  as  a  means  of  grace.^ 

5.  Count  Zinzendorf,  whose  family,  old  and  noble,  had 
been  compelled  to  leave  Austria  for  Germany  on  becoming 
Protestant,  came  to  Halle  at  the  age  of  ten,  and  for  six 
years  there  was  under  the  influence  of  Francke. 

(1)  "  At  an  early  age  he  became  decided  in  his  religious 
life,  and  he  never  swerved  till  he  died.  He  was  a  man  of 
lively  fancy  and  poetic  temperament,  with  considerable 
power  of  judgment,  which,  however,  was  ready  to  be  carried 
away  by  his  ardour  and  restless  activity.  His  devotion  to 
the  Gospel  took  the  form  of  an  intense  personal  love  to 
the  Saviour  sometimes  marked  by  an  over-sweetness  and 
familiarity  which  made  his  hymns  distasteful  to  Bengel, 
whose  depth  disliked  great  demonstrativeness.  Bengel  and 
Zinzendorf  are  men  who  shew  in  what  different  moulds 
Christianity  may  be  cast;  the  one  full  of  thought  and 
regulated  feeling,  the  other  full  of  impulse,  demonstrative 
expression  and  action."^ 

(2)  In  1722  he  was  led  by  Christian  David  to  befriend 
the  persecuted  community  of  "  Bible  Christians,"  or  Moravian 
Brethren,  and  to  afford  them  an  asylum  in  the  village  he 
built  for  them,  and  to  which  was  given  the  name  Herrnhut, 
the  Lord's  watch.  The  Brethren  were  hence  known  in 
Germany  as  fferrnhiiter,  "  the  Lord's  Watchmen."     To  the 

»  See  HLH,  pp.  174-176.  2  khP,  p.  229,  note. 

»  KHP,  pp.  232-233  ;  see  HLH,  pp.  170-172. 


PIETISTS,    RATIONALISTS   AND   MEDIATORS      197 

interests  of  this  community  Zinzendorf  devoted  the  rest  of 
his  life.  He  travelled  far  and  wide,  not  only  in  Europe, 
but  even  in  America,  to  spread  the  movement.  Crowds, 
drawn  from  all  classes,  gathered  to  hear  him  preach.  He 
preached  salvation  through  Christ  as  not  only  outward 
forgiveness,  but  as  inward  renewal,  with  an  earnestness  and 
insight  that  gave  him  power  over  human  hearts.  There 
are  two  facts  about  the  Moravian  community  of  special 
interest.  Not  only  were  the  Moravians  the  first  to  send 
out  missionaries  as  an  essential  function  of  the  Church,  but 
they  even  regarded  the  Church  itself  as  a  whole  as  com- 
mitted to  mission  work  at  home  and  abroad.  It  was  a 
Moravian,  Peter  Bohler,  "  who  revealed  to  John  Wesley  the 
way  of  God  more  perfectly,"^  and  Methodism  borrowed 
much  from  the  Brethren. 

6.  Another  centre  of  pietism  in  the  West  of  Germany 
was  in  Elberfeld  and  Barmen.  (1)  Here  Gerhard  Ter- 
steegen  (1697—1769),  a  cultured  layman,  exercised  a 
wide-spread  and  deep-rooted  influence.  Beginning  as  an 
ascetic  hermit,  he  passed  through  great  inward  struggles  to 
a  more  friendly  attitude  to  the  Church :  by  the  practice  of 
the  presence  of  God  and  constant  self-discipline  he  fitted 
himself  to  be  the  guide  of  the  inner  life  of  many,  especially 
when  he  founded  at  Otterfeld,  in  the  "  Pilgrim's  Hut,"  a 
brotherhood  which  in  a  common  life  devoted  itself  to 
prayer,  labour  and  joy  in  God.  His  influence  as  a  preacher 
spread  far  beyond  this  community;  and  his  sermons, 
"  Spiritual  crumbs,  fallen  from  the  Lord's  Table,"  pub- 
lished shortly  before  his  death,  perpetuated  the  spirit  of 
his  piety,  which  influenced  especially  Gottfried  Menken 
(1768—1831),  and  which  still  remains  in  the  Wupperthal.^ 

(2)  Other  representatives  of  the  more  spiritual  move- 
ment, even  when  rationalism  was  dominant,  who  are 
mentioned  by  Ker,  are  Jung  Stilling  (1740—1817),  who 
by  his  correspondence  was  a  helper  of  many  in  the  higher 
life;  Lavater^  (1741—1801),  a  pastor  of  Zurich,  best 
known  for  his  theories  and  researches  on  physiognomy,  but 
1  KHP,  p.  237.  2  HLH,  pp.  177-178.  »  KHP,  pp.  267-268. 


198  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

still  more  worthy  of  remembrance  as  one  who  hungered  and 
thirsted  for  the  living  God,  and  who  boldly  confessed  Jesus 
Christ  as  Lord  in  a  circle  of  unbelieving  friends ;  Joharm 
Georg  Hamann  ^  (1730-1788),  a  philosophical  thinker  of 
great  power  who  held  fast  the  belief  in  Divine  revelation, 
and  whose  counsels  to  many  in  distress  of  soul  won  him 
the  title  of  the  Wise  Man  of  the  North,  even  as  Oetinger 
was  called  the  Wise  Man  of  the  South. 

Matthias  Claudius  (1740-1815),  who,  while  emphasis- 
ing feeling  in  religion,  as  did  Jacobi,  yet  maintained  the 
need  and  worth  of  God's  Word  as  the  support  of  religious 
feeling,  was  less  the  mystic  than  either  Stilling  or  Lavater 
and  less  the  philosopher  than  Hamann,  and  may  best  be 
described  as  an  old  pietist  and  Puritan  with  modern  cul- 
ture. It  was  by  such  men  as  these  that  the  faith  of  many 
who  were  grieved  by  the  prevalent  rationalism,  and  who 
feared  even  that  the  evangelical  piety  might  succumb  to 
its  withering  influence,  was  sustained.  They  were  the 
watchmen  who  gave  the  assurance,  that  the  night  would 
pass  and  the  dawn  break.^ 

11. 

1.  In  a  previous  chapter  the  fact  was  noted  that  the 
Latitudinarian  movement  in  England  had  a  historical 
connection  with  Puritanism  ;  so  it  was  also  with  Pietism 
and  llluminism  or  Rationalism.  Thomasius  and  Wolff,  the 
leaders  of  the  German  "  Enlightenment,"  worked  at  the 
same  high  school  with  Francke.^  For  the  reasons  already 
stated,  the  later  movement  to  a  large  extent  superseded  the 
earlier.  The  buds  of  spring  were  nipped  by  the  frosts  of 
winter.  Between  the  two  movements,  however,  stands 
Johann  Lorenz  Mosheim  (1693  or  4-1755),  orthodox  in 
doctrine  but  "  moderate "  in  feeling.  Not  only  was  he 
the  most  learned  man,  but  he  was  also  the  most  popular 
preacher  of  his  age.  He  did  not  reach  the  masses,  but 
rather  the  cultured  classes ;  and  yet  the  congregations  he 

»  KHP,  pp.  269-275.  «  KHP,  pp.  276-285.  *  HLH,  p.  159. 


PIETISTS,   RATIONALISTS   AND   MEDIATORS       199 

atttacted  were  often  so  large  as  to  require  that  soldiers 
should  be  present  to  keep  order.  His  practice  as  a 
preacher  was  based  on  a  theory  which  he  expounded  in 
lectures  on  Homiletics,  published  after  his  death,  "  A 
sermon,"  he  says,  "  is  a  discourse  in  which,  following  the 
guidance  of  a  portion  of  Scripture,  an  assembly  of  Chris- 
tians, already  instructed  in  the  elements  of  religion,  is 
confirmed  in  knowledge  or  roused  to  zeal  in  godliness."  ^ 
He  does  not,  be  it  observed,  take  account  of  missionary  or 
evangelistic  preaching ;  "  edification  "  of  those  already  in  the 
Church  is  the  object,  and  this  must  determine  what  shall 
be  included  or  excluded,  to  enlighten  the  mind,  or  quicken 
the  will.     As  regards  the  form,  he  lays  down  these  rules : 

"  That  it  should  be  in  keeping  with  the  dignity  and 
importance  of  the  subject ;  that  it  should  be  lively  and  have 
as  much  ornament  as  does  not  interfere  with  clearness ;  and 
that  the  language  should  as  far  as  possible  be  that  which  is 
used  in  ordinary  life  among  cultivated  people."  ^ 

So  great  a  contrast  was  there  between  his  method  and 
style  of  preaching  and  that  current,  that  multitudes  were 
charmed  by  his  eloquence.  He  belongs  to  the  same  type 
as  the  "  classic "  French  preachers ;  and  his  preaching 
lacked  permanent  influence  just  as  did  theirs.  He  was 
lucid,  but  superficial ;  he  was  eloquent,  but  not  fervent ; 
his  reasonableness  and  seriousness  did  not  sound  the  depths 
of  God  or  man.  He  was  too  fluent ;  and  so  his  sermons 
assumed  an  inordinate  length,  e.g.,  his  funeral  sermon  for 
Frederick  ii.  fills  eighty-three  printed  pages.^ 

»  Quoted  KHP,  pp.  242-243.  ^  kHP,  p.  243. 

'  HLH,  p.  166 ;  see  pp.  164-167.  He  mentions  as  examples  of  the 
influence  of  the  new  intellectual  conditions,  not  primarily  on  the  content, 
but  the  form  of  preaching,  Johann  Jacob  Rambach  (1698-1735)  and  Johann 
Gubtav  Reinbeck  (1688-1741);  and  describes  them  as  the  first-fruits  of  this 
movement  (pp.  162-164).  As  instances  of  increasing  influence  on  content 
as  well  as  form,  he  gives  two  younger  contemporaries  of  Mosheim,  Jh. 
Friederich  Wilhelm  Jerusalem  (1707-1789)  and  A.  F.  Wilhelm  Sack 
(1703-1786).  The  second  imitated  Tillotson,  and  followed  the  Reformed 
French  preachers  in  taking  short  sayings  as  his  texts  (pp.  167-169).  The 
conti-ast  of  the  two  positions  (the  orthodox  and  the  rationalist)  is  clearly 
presented  in  Ker's  quotation  from  Reinhard's  Gesldndnisse  in  his  note  on 
pp.  286-287. 


200  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

2.  The  enlightenment  in  Germany  was  but  part  of  a 
wider  movement. 

"In  Scotland,  Hume  was  writing  his  Essay  against 
miracles,  and  Blair  was  the  great  preacher.  In  England,  it 
was  the  age  of  the  deists  who  followed  Tillotson,  the  English 
Mosheim ;  and  the  old  Presbyterian  church  of  Howe,  Baxter, 
and  Henry  was  passing  along  the  road  of  culture  and  pro- 
gress, to  drop  one  after  another  of  the  Cln-istian  doctrines, 
till  it  became  the  church  of  Taylor  ^ of  Norwich,  Price,  and 
Priestley,  and  the  sparse  Unitarianism  of  our  day.  In 
France,  Voltaire  had  taken  the  place  of  Pascal  and  Bossuet, 
and,  worse  than  Voltaire,  the  materialism  of  the  Encyclo- 
paedists was  sowing  the  seeds  of  the  Eevolution."  ^ 

The  object  of  the  Illuminism  was  to  make  everything, 
Christianity  itself,  appear  "  reasonable "  to  the  knowledge 
and  intelligence  of  the  age.  It  was  assumed  that  nature 
had  endowed  man  with  certain  simple  truths  about  God, 
duty  and  destiny ;  and  the  Christian  revelation  itself  had 
to  be  brought  within  the  bounds  of  this  natural  religion. 

(1)  Thomasius  applied  these  principles  not  only  to 
science  and  philosophy,  but  also  to  religion  and  even 
preaching. 

"  Since  all  knowledge  had  this  alone  as  its  object  to 
distinguish  the  true  from  the  false,  the  good  from  the  bad, 
to  learn  how  one  may  understand  to  live  rightly  and  use- 
fully, it  seemed  natural  and  justified,  to  place  instruction 
about  religion,  preaching,  under  this  application.  The 
tendency  to  moralising  which  first  became  popular  in 
England,  could  only  be  strengthened  by  the  German 
Illumination  in  respect  of  securing  the  utility  of  preaching, 
inasmuch  as  the  religious  was  employed  as  a  means  of 
virtue."  ^ 

1  KHP,  p.  245. 

^HLH,  p.  160.  See  pp.  160-162.  "Most  of  this  School,"  says  Ker, 
"took  to  'moral  preaching.'  Sometimes  they  changed  the  language  of  the 
Bible,  in  order  to  make  it,  as  they  said,  more  rational.  For  conversion  or 
regeneration,  they  spoke  of  amendment  of  life  ;  for  justification,  of  for- 
giveness on  condition  of  repentance  ;  for  the  Holy  Spirit,  of  the  exercise  of 
the  higher  reason ;  for  the  atonement  of  Christ,  of  the  spirit  of  sacrifice 
which  He  has  taught  us  by  His  esample,  and  so  ou  "  (p.  247). 

The  "Moderate"  movement  in  Scotland  shows  the  same  characteristics. 


PIETISTS,   RATIONALISTS  AND   MEDIATORS      201 

(2)  To  the  form  of  preaching  Wolff  contributed  the 
demonstrative  method.  Formal  logic  found  its  way  into 
the  pulpit.  Apprehension  was  to  be  secured  by  clear 
definition,  and  conviction  wrought  by  rigid  inference. 
That  religion  by  its  very  nature  and  object  refuses  to  be 
forced  into  the  Procrustes  bed  of  logical  method  was  not 
realised ;  because  the  piety  of  the  time  was  itself  so  super- 
ficial. The  Wolffian  philosophy  affected  even  the  language 
of  the  pulpit.  While  French  and  English  influences  did  not 
succeed  in  imparting  to  German  all  the  excellences  of  these 
tongues,  and  German  prose  remained  not  swift  and  light- 
winged,  but  slow  and  heavy-footed,  it  did  gain  greater 
lucidity  and  intelligibility.  Gottsched  became  dictator 
as  regards  the  language  to  be  used  in  the  pulpit,  and  lent 
it  that  insipidity  which  characterised  it  long  after  the 
great  poetic  revival  in  the  literature.^ 

3.  In  the  absence  of  religious  life  to  sustain  the 
aspiration  and  endeavour  of  the  pulpit,  a  lamentable 
degradation  soon  appeared.  The  language,  in  aiming  at 
sublimity,  became  bombastic.  Paul  was  patron  isingly 
described  as  "  the  enlightened  teacher  of  the  Gentiles." 
The  principle  of  utilitarianism  dominated  the  pulpit; 
"  refinement  and  enlightenment "  were  to  be  brought  within 
the  reach  of  the  common  people. 

"There  appeared,"  says  Van  Oosterzee,  "during  the 
second  half  of  the  eighteenth  century  '  agricultural '  dis- 
courses, 'nature  sermons  and  field  sermons,'  homiletic 
commendations  of  vaccination  (end  of  eighteenth  century), 
silk-worm  culture,  etc.  Who  has  not  heard  of  the  Christ- 
mas sermon  on  the  stall-feeding  of  cattle ;  of  the  Epiphany 
sermon  on  listening  to  good  counsels ;  of  the  Palm  Sunday 
sermon  on  the  damaging  of  trees ;  the  Easter  sermon  on  the 
benefit  of  a  walk  (the  travellers  to  Emmaus) ;  the  Pentecost 
sermon  on  drunkenness,  etc.  ?  not  to  speak  of  a  Maundy- 
Thursday  discourse  'on  the  making  of  a  good  will';  or 
another  on  the  exciting  theme,  '  how  wise  and  beneficial  the 
arrangement,  that  death  is  placed  not  at  the  beginning,  but 
at  the   end  of  lifa'     The   'sermons  on  texts  taken   from 

1  HLH,  pp.  160-161. 


202  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

uature/  by  J.  L.  Ewald  (died  1822)  and  others,  in  which,  e.g., 
the  storm,  the  eye,  the  tongue,  etc.,  supplies  the  theme  to 
be  treated  of,  were  of  this  kind,  still  the  best."  ^ 

4.  Amid  such  conditions  no  great  preaching  is  to  be 
expected ;  but  a  few  of  the  notable  preachers  may  be 
mentioned.  (1)  Johann  Joachim  Spalding  (1714-1804)  ^ 
offered  a  defence  of  the  ministry  against  the  assaults  of 
unbelief  in  his  book  on  the  Utility  of  the  Office  of  the 
Freacher.  The  preacher's  duty  is  to  instruct  and  improve 
his  hearers.  He  should  not  teach  theology,  the  meta- 
physical doctrines  which  the  common  people  cannot 
understand  and  of  which  they  can  make  no  good  use ;  such 
as  the  Trinity,  the  two  natures  of  Christ,  the  atonement. 
All  moral  duties  are  to  be  enforced  by  diligent  presentation 
of  the  teaching  and  example  of  Christ. 

Ker  gives  a  Sketch  of  a  Sermon  by  Spalding  on  Luke 
113*-*o — Simeon  and  Anna  in  the  Temple. 

"  The  whole  life  of  a  Christian  can,  and  should  be,  the 
service  of  God. 

I.  The  whole  life  can  be  divine  service,  for — 

1.  Every  benevolent  deed  in  God's  name  is  service. 

2.  The   common  work   of    life,  with  the    feeling   of 

religion,  is  service. 

3.  The  pleasures   of  life,  when  innocent   and   God- 

grateful,  are  service. 

II.  Our  whole  life  should  be  divine  service,  for — 

1.  All   our  life  belongs  to  God,  as   its  Author  and 

Owner. 

2.  All  our  life  may  thus  be  made  true  happiness."  * 

(2)  George  Joachim  Zollikofer  (1730-1788)  was 
considered  "  the  Cicero  of  the  pulpit "  in  his  own  age.  He 
was  a  topical  preacher ;  his  subjects  often  had  very  little 
connection  with  his  text,  the  exposition  of  which  he 
ignored,  and  were  at  the  circumference  of  Christian  morals 

1  OPT,  p.  124. 

2  See   KPH,    pp.   248-250;    also    HLP,   pp.    187-190.      Spalding  was 
involved  in  a  controversy  with  Herder,  which  will  afterwards  be  noted. 

»  KHP,  p.  260. 


PIETISTS,  RATIONALISTS  AND  MEDIATORS       203 

rather  than  at  the  centre  of  Christian  faith.  Style  and 
delivery,  however,  were  faultless,  and  so  he  enjoyed  a  great 
popularity.^ 

(3)  Frank  Volkmar  Keinbard*  (1753-1812)  had  so 
great  a  fame,  that  in  the  common  opinion  he  was  held  tso 
be  the  greatest  preacher  since  Luther.  He  strove  for 
something  more  satisfying  to  the  soul  than  the  thought  of 
bis  own  time ;  but  could  not  escape  from  it.  Preaching 
evengelical  doctrines,  he  lacked  the  spiritual  fervour  which 
gives  them  power.  An  account  which  Ker  gives  of  his 
method  of  preparation  is  interesting  enough  to  justify 
quotation. 

"He  worked  out  each  sermon  with  the  greatest  care. 
First  he  sketched  a  scheme  in  which  the  chief  thoughts 
were  outlined  in  logical  order,  and  on  this  he  set  great  value, 
both  for  its  own  sake  and  as  an  aid  to  his  memory.  His 
memory  for  words  was  very  weak,  and,  despite  all  the 
exercise  he  gave  it,  did  not  improve.  But  he  had  a  memory 
for  the  logical  outline,  and  he  constructed  his  discourses 
accordingly,  filling  up  the  parts  of  the  plan  as  a  painter 
might  do  with  a  sketch.  The  committing  of  the  sermon  was 
to  him  the  most  disagreeable  part  of  his  work.  But  he 
did  not  shirk  it.  Beginning  on  Monday,  he  committed  a 
section  every  morning,  so  that  on  the  Saturday  the  whole 
sermon  was  fast  and  firm.  While  he  was  committing  one 
thus  piecemeal,  he  was  working  out  another,  and  by  the 
time  he  had  the  first  committed,  the  second  was  ready  in 
his  desk.  The  sermon,  in  his  view,  is  a  piece  of  art,  to 
which,  as  to  its  outer  form,  both  logic  and  rhetoric  must 
contribute,  but  logic  is  the  more  important.  Its  thoughts 
must  come  up  in  regular  order,  group  themselves  in  pro- 
portion, and  lead  to  proper  conclusions.  The  language 
should  be  suited  to  this,  simple,  clear,  pointed.  The 
preacher  must  never  forget  that  he  is  above  all  a  teacher ; 
he  who  makes  it  his  chief  aim  to  awaken  and  move  robs  his 
office  of  much  of  its  value,  for  if  we  are  to  reach  the  heart, 
it  must  be  through  the  understanding."  ' 

Unhappily  it  must  be  added  what  the  understanding 

1  See  KHP,  pp.  250-262  ;  also  HLH,  pp.  196-197. 

2  See  HLH,  pp.  202-205,  and  KHP,  pp.  252-259.  ^  ggp^  257-258. 


204  THE  CHEISTIAN  PREACHER 

of  the  time    accepted  was  not   capable  of  reaching  and 
moving  the  heart. 

(4)  Joh.  Caspar  Hafeli  (1754—1811)  began  as  a 
follower  of  Lavater,  but  violently  changed  to  extreme 
rationalism,  and  only  his  eloquence  remained  to  link  to- 
gether the  two  periods.  A  similar  revolution  took  place 
in  Fried.  Wilh.  Abraham  Teller  (1734-1804).  Faith  for 
him  was  only  a  stage  preparatory  for  knowledge  in  the 
sense  of  the  Enlightenment.  Hence  his  advice  to  preachers 
is :  "  In  religion  men  need  to  be  enlightened,  always  more 
enlightened,  and  they  cannot  get  too  much  enlightenment." 
With  good  moral  intentions  his  preaching  was  religiously 
impotent.  At  the  Church  festivals  he  advised  that  history 
and  doctrine  should  be  quickly  passed  over  for  the  sake  of 
the  practical  lesson.  The  visit  of  the  wise  men  (Mt  2^"^^) 
shows  how  we  may  give  and  take  good  advice.  It  was 
along  such  a  downward  path  that  preaching  went  to  the 
depths  of  degradation,  already  described,  in  which  it  lost 
not  only  Christian,  but  even  religious  character,  and  was 
concerned  only  about  earthly  business  and  worldly  pru- 
dence.^ Contrary  to  the  general  practice  of  this  volume,  a 
larger  number  of  individual  preachers  has  been  referred  to, 
but  in  each  case  to  illustrate  some  characteristic,  condition, 
or  consequence  of  the  two  movements  under  discussion. 

III. 

1.  The  opposition  between  pietism  and  rationalism 
could  not  remain  permanent :  a  reconciliation  must  be 
sought  between  revelation  and  reason  as  the  final  authority 
on  religion.  A  promise  of  a  better  day  was  given  by 
Johann  Gotfried  Herder  (1744-1803),  who  was  "  preacher 
and  poet,  theologian  and  many-sided  author."  ^  He  aspired 
for  a  spirit-filled  preaching,  but  did  not  soar  above  the 
enlightenment,  the  spiritual  poverty  of  which  he  felt.  His 
youth  was  influenced  by  pietism,  and  Hamann  as  well  as 
Kant  affected  his  development  as  a  thinker.     (1)  At  the 

»  HLH,  pp.  197-200.  ^  HLH,  p.  186  ;  see  pp.  185-187. 


PIETISTS,  RATIONALISTS  AND  MEDIATORS       205 

very  beginning  of  his  activity  as  a  preacher  he  sketched 
his  ideal  in  his  small  book,  God's  Speaker.  "  God's  Speaker  1 
great  in  quietness,  solemn  without  poetic  splendour,  eloquent 
without  Ciceronian  periods,  powerful  without  the  bewitch- 
ing arts  of  the  drama,  wise  without  learned  sophistication, 
and  captivating  without  politic  cleverness."  ^  He  required 
in  the  preacher  sincerity  and  simpKcity,  no  assumption  and 
no  artificiality ;  but  preaching  based  on  experience,  in- 
tuitive, confident  and  inspiring  confidence,  awakening  the 
sense  of  God's  presence,  and  promoting  a  morality  that  had 
its  roots  in  religion.  This  ideal  remained  his  during  the 
whole  of  his  distinguished  and  influential  career  as  a 
preacher.  To  the  influence  of  Hamann  probably  was  due 
his  loving  appreciation  of  the  stories  and  persons  in  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  He  delighted  in  the  humanness  of  the 
Bible  as  showing  God's  condescension.  He  did  not,  how- 
ever, altogether  detach  himself  from  his  environment,  and 
may  be  described  as  "  an  Illuminist  with  his  Bible  in  his 
hand."  In  his  Provincial  Leaves  to  Preachers  (1773—1774), 
he  attacked  with  all  the  intellectual  resources  at  his  com- 
mand, "  Spalding's  attempt  to  lay  a  firm  ground  for  the 
certainty  of  salvation  and  the  importance  of  the  office  of 
the  preacher  in  morality."  His  guiding  idea  is  God's 
education  of  mankind  in  piety  by  a  progressive  revelation, 
in  which  the  Bible  is  rooted,  and  of  which  it  forms  a  part 
Accordingly  the  business  of  preaching  is  the  proclamation 
of  this  revelation,  and  not  teaching  wisdom  or  virtue  by 
argument.  For  him  moralism  was  one-sided  in  regarding 
religion  only  as  a  motive  of  morality ;  piety  as  relationship 
to  God  both  in  the  Bible  and  in  human  history  ever  touched 
a  responsive  chord  in  his  sensitive  soul.  Nevertheless,  he 
himself  did  not  make  the  Gospel  of  the  reconciling  love 
of  God  in  Christ  central  in  his  own  preaching ;  but  a 
"  humanity  transfigured  by  pious  morality,  of  which  Jesus 
is  regarded  and  presented  for  imitation  as  the  archtype 
and  mediator,  forms  the  content  of  his  own  sermons."  ^ 
(2)  In  spite  of  his  living  interest  in  history,  he  does 
»  HLH,  p.  186.  2  HLH,  pp.  190-192. 


206  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

not  always  succeed  in  making  it  valuable  for  religious  life. 
An  opponent  of  moralism,  he  shows  his  greatest  power 
when  he  is  dealing  with  moral  issues.  In  sermons  on 
special  occasions  the  distinctively  Christian  is  often  lost 
amid  the  generally  religious  reflections.  His  sermons  were 
cast  in  the  form  of  homilies,  although  based  on  a  full  out- 
line ;  and  the  delivery  was  living,  sometimes  fiery,  some- 
times quiet,  as  in  talk,  made  more  effective  by  full-toned 
voice  and  expressive  face,  but  without  any  gestures.  While 
he  disappointed  those  who  from  his  early  defence  of  the 
Bible  expected  a  scriptural  expositor,  yet  by  his  poetic 
genius  he  did  impart  vital  reality  to  the  Bible  and  the 
religious  history  of  mankind,  and  by  his  influence  carried 
religious  thought  beyond  the  narrowness  of  pietism  and  the 
shallowness  of  rationalism.^ 

(3)  A  characteristic  passage  on  The  Meaning  of  In- 
spiration may  be  quoted.  Having  shown  that  as  speech  is 
a  sign  of  human  imperfection,  God  does  not  speak,  he  next 
explains  how  God  reveals  Himself. 

"  Now,  if  we  suppose  that  God  wished  to  reveal  himself 
to  man,  and  yet  otherwise  than  in  his  essential  nature,  how 
else  could  he  do  it  but  by  human  agency?  How  can  he 
speak  to  man  otherwise  ?  to  imperfect  men,  otherwise  than 
in  the  imperfect,  defective  language  in  which  they  can 
understand  him,  and  to  which  they  are  accustomed  ?  I  use 
far  too  inadequate  a  comparison  for  our  purpose,  when  I  say 
that  a  father  speaks  to  a  child  only  in  a  childish  way ;  for 
between  them  both  there  still  exists  a  relationship.  Father 
and  child  are  yet  both  akin,  who  can  think  no  otherwise 
than  by  words,  and  have  a  common  language  of  reason.  But 
between  God  and  men  there  is  no  correspondence ;  they 
have,  as  it  were,  nothing  at  all  in  common  as  a  basis  of 
mutual  understanding.  God  must,  therefore,  explain  him- 
self to  men  altogether  in  a  human  way,  according  to  our 
own  mode  and  speech,  suitably  to  our  weakness,  and  the 
narrowness  of  our  ideas;  he  cannot  speak  like  a  god,  he 
must  speak  altogether  like  a  man."  The  use  of  human 
agency  involves  other  limitations.  "  Now  this  religion  has 
been  revealed  in  an  Eastern  land ;  how,  then,  could  it  be 

1  HLH,  pp.  193-194. 


PIETISTS,   RATIONALISTS  AND   MEDIATORS      207 

revealed  except  in  a  manner  intelligible  to  Orientals,  and 
consequently  in  those  forms  of  thought  prevalent  among 
them  ?  Otherwise  God  would  have  failed  entirely  in  his 
object.  Our  Bible,  therefore,  carries  upon  every  page  of  it 
all  the  traces  of  Oriental  habits  of  thought."  The  Bible 
must,  therefore,  be  interpreted  by  our  own  thinking. 
"  Believe  me,  my  hearers,  it  is  no  tenet  of  religion  to  abjure 
thinking.  It  is  rather  its  decay  and  the  decay  of  humanity." 
If  we  think  about  our  religion,  it  "  serves  also  for  the  educa- 
tion of  our  time,  and  that  which  has  already  so  far  exalted 
the  human  understanding  would  continue  to  elevate  it,  and 
with  it  our  virtue,  our  humanity,  our  bliss.  Happy  times ! 
happy  world  ! "  ^ 

2.  A  theologian  and  preacher  of  greater  endowments 
and  wider  and  more  enduring  influence  was  Friedrich 
Daniel  Schleiermacher  (1768— 1834),^  who  combined  piety 
and  philosophy,  culture  and  faith,  the  power  of  the  thinker, 
and  the  gifts  of  the  speaker  in  so  great  a  personality,  that 
he  marks  the  beginning  of  the  most  fruitful  epoch  of 
religious  thought  in  Germany. 

(1)  At  first,  in  his  S2)eeches  on  religion  (1799),  he 
appealed  to  the  class  which  had  been  most  affected  by  the 
Illumination.  He  showed  that  "  the  pious  consciousness 
of  entire  dependence  belongs  essentially  to  the  human 
consciousness,  when  it  rightly  understands  itself."  It  is 
impossible  to  estimate  the  number  of  those  to  whom  he 
made  religion  significant  and  authoritative  as  it  had  never 
been  before.  In  his  theology  he  vindicated  the  claim  of 
faith,  and  reconciled  it  with  the  rights  of  knowledge.  In 
his  preaching,  to  which  much  of  his  commanding  influence 
was  due,  he  gave  the  central  position  to  Christ  as  the 
Sinless  Saviour,  the  Mediator  between  God  and  man, 
because  of  the  unique  potency  of  His  consciousness  of  God, 
which  He  communicates  to  others.  Laying  stress  on 
religious  emotion  in  the  relation  to  God  through  Christ,  he 

»  CME  vii.  pp.  37-41. 

^  Dr.  Selbie  has  offered  a  Critical  and  Historical  Study  of  Schleiermacter 
(London,  1918) ;  and  Dr.  Cross  has  given  a  condensed  presentation  of  his 
chief  work,  The  Christian  Faith  (Chicago,  1911).  See  HLH,  pp.  209-212, 
and  KHP,  pp.  288-303. 


208  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

always  related  piety  to  the  tasks  of  the  individual  believer 
and  the  Christian  community,  for  he  was  a  "  practical 
mystic." 

(2)  Educated  at  a  Moravian  school,  "his  heart  was 
with  Pietism  "  ;  a  student  at  Halle,  under  the  influence  of 
Semler  and  other  rationalist  teachers,  "  his  mind  was  with 
Illuminism  " ;  and  these  two  elements  in  him  were  never 
quite  fused  into  an  inward  unity.  Perhaps  for  that  very 
reason  he  was  the  better  able  to  prepare  for,  if  not  finally 
to  perform,  their  synthesis.  Ker,  judging  him  from  a  more 
conservative  theological  position  than  prevails  to-day,  bears 
this  testimony  concerning  him  : 

"  There  can  be  no  question  as  to  the  deep  sincerity, 
earnestness,  and  lofty  character  of  Schleiermacher,  nor  as  to 
the  fact  that  he  struck  a  deadly  blow  at  the  old  rationalism 
by  his  deeper  views  of  sin  and  redemption,  and  his  more 
exalted  conception  of  the  work  of  Christ;  but  his  was  a 
position  that  could  not  be  maintained.  He  himself  was 
wounded  in  the  heel  by  the  arrow  of  doubt.  The  shifting 
sands  of  restless  criticism  that  were  blowing  about  him 
prevented  him  from  seeing  clearly  the  real  and  the  positive. 
Yet,  after  all,  his  face  was  not  towards  rationalism,  but  away 
from  it.  It  is  this  that  marks  the  difference  between  men, 
not  so  much  where  they  stand  as  whither  they  are  looking 
and  going,  and  teaching  others  to  go ;  and  Schleiermacher 
was  the  man  who  made  the  Church  turn  from  the  theology 
of  the  surface  understanding  to  the  deeper  theology  of 
religious  feeling  and  faith."  ^ 

(3)  He  had  a  distinct  conception  of  what  preaching 
should  be.  The  source  of  the  sermon  is  the  inward 
experience,  the  religious  feeling  of  the  preacher,  stimulated 
and  confirmed  by  the  Bible  ;  and  the  subject  must  be 
Christian ;  the  person  and  the  influence  of  Christ  must  be 
applied  in  manifold  ways  to  life  and  duty.  The  purpose  is 
not  conversion,  for  the  Church  is  not  a  missionary  agency, 
but  the  confirmation  of  the  faith  which  it  is  to  be  assumed 
the  congregation  already  possesses.  Not  instruction,  on 
the  one  hand,  nor  impulse  to  action  on  the  other,  is  to  be 

1  EHP,  p.  295. 


PIETISTS,   RATIONALISTS  AND   MEDIATORS       209 

the  purpose,  but  the  stimulation  of  the  religious  emotions 
by  the  presentation  of  the  object  of  faith.  In  seeking  the 
heightening  of  feeling,  he  was  himself  often  led  to  a  process 
of  reflection  which  strained  rather  than  stirred.  While 
insisting  that  each  sermon  should  have  a  text,  his  treat- 
ment was  topical  rather  than  expository  ;  having  got  out 
of  the  text  the  subject  wanted,  he  was  no  more  concerned 
about  it.  As  his  aim  was  neither  exposition  nor  instruc- 
tion, but  the  movement  of  the  heart,  he  attached  no 
importance  to  logical  structure.  What  matters  in  his 
view  is  that  the  preacher  himself  gets  the  tone  proper  to 
his  subject,  and  by  mutual  sympathy  the  tone  of  the 
preacher  is  imparted  to  his  hearers.  The  sermon  should 
be  a  homily  or  conversation,  a  dialogue  of  the  preacher 
and  the  Scriptures  on  the  one  hand,  and  a  dialogue  of  the 
preacher  and  his  congregation  on  the  other ;  what  by 
inquiry  of  the  Scriptures  he  gains  he  imparts  by  question- 
ing his  hearers  as  to  their  needs  and  wishes.  The  style 
suitable  for  the  sermon  is  not  the  poetic,  but  animated  and 
elevated  prose,  moderate  and  modest  in  the  delivery .^  ; 

(4)  His  preaching  was  neither  reading  nor  recitation 
from  memory  of  what  had  been  written,  but  ex  tempore 
speech  after  much  and  careful  meditation.  His  language 
often  fails  to  be  concrete,  and  loses  power  and  charm 
because  it  lacks  close  touch  with  the  Scriptures,  especially 
the  Old  Testament.  Whatever  defects  a  close  scrutiny 
may  detect,  they  do  not  diminish  his  greatness. 

"  It  was  not  a  school  that  he  founded,"  says  Otto  Braun, 
"  but  an  epoch.  He  is  a  great  man,  for  he  cannot  be 
replaced.  From  his  writings  and  deeds  there  confronts  us 
radiant,  a  pure  and  complete  humanity.  In  him  a  cheerful 
gentleness  was  combiued  with  active  manliness,  and  both 
united  to  form  a  harmony  of  the  inner  man  that  issued  in 
a  selfless  devotion  to  the  highest  aims.  Schleiermacher's 
greatest  work  was  his  own  life."  ^ 

3.  Among  other  preachers  we  may  distinguish  several 
tendencies. 

*  See  KHP,  pp.  296-303.  *  Quoted  by  Selbie,  op.  cit.,  p.  27. 


210  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

(1)  In  the  steps  of  Schleiermacher  followed  the 
Mediating  School,  which  aimed  at  the  reconciliation  of 
religion  and  science,  faith  and  reason ;  its  most  distin- 
guished representatives  in  the  pulpit  were  Karl  Immanuel 
Nitzsch  (1787-1868)  and  Friederich  August  Tholuck 
(1799-1877).  Of  the  second  Ker  says  :  "  While  he  lived 
he  was  probably  the  best  preacher  in  Germany,  and  when 
he  died  it  was  felt  that  one  of  the  finest-moulded  Christian 
natures  had  left  the  world."  * 

(2)  The  succession  of  pietism  was  maintained  in  Wiirtem- 
berg  by  Ludwig  Hofacker  (1798— 1828),  who,  by  his  simple, 
direct,  earnest,  intense,  sympathetic  and  urgent  preaching, 
without  any  arts  of  oratory,  moved  multitudes,  as  an 
ambassador  of  God  beseeching  men  in  Christ's  stead  to  be 
reconciled.  Glaus  Harms  (1788-1855)  was  the  instru- 
ment of  revival  in  the  North  of  Germany,  as  from  deep 
personal  conviction  he  preached  frankly  and  boldly  the 
Christian  Gospel  as  Luther  had  conceived  it.  Compared 
with  Hofacker,  "  he  was  not  so  searching,  arresting,  sub- 
duing in  spiritual  power,  but  more  broadly  human  and 
fresh,  having  a  quaint  fancy  and  a  love  for  old  confessional 
forms — an  eloquent  Matthew  Henry."  ^ 

(3)  While  both  these  preachers  held  fast  the  teaching 
of  the  Scriptures,  the  content  and  form  of  their  preaching 
was  not  so  completely  dominated  by  it  as  that  of  Kudolf 
Stier  (1800-1862)  and  Friederich  Wilhelm  Krummacher 
(1796-1868).^  There  were  popular  preachers  of  many 
schools  in  Germany  in  the  nineteenth  century ;  but  they 
must  be  passed  over,  as  the  present  purpose  is  to  illustrate 
important  movements  in,  and  characteristic  types  of,  preach- 
ing, rather  than  to  give  an  account  of  preachers,  however 
eminent  or  influential. 

»  KHP,  p.  319  ;  see  pp.  308-825. 

2  KHP,  p.  842  ;  see  pp.  328-345.  •  KHP,  pp.  348-365. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

EVANGELISTS  AND  MISSIONARIES. 

I. 

1.  A  MOVEMENT,  similar  in  some  respects  to  German 
pietism,  but  of  far  greater  and  wider  influence,  was  the 
Evangelical  Eevival  in  England,  which  is  comparable  in 
its  importance  for  the  religious  life  of  the  country  with 
the  Eeformation,^  What  it  meant  for  the  national  history- 
may  be  stated  in  the  words  of  a  historian  who  speaks  with 
special  authority  on  the  subject.  Dr.  J.  Holland  Eose  is 
contrasting  the  political  situation  in  France  and  England. 

"  The  relations  of  religion  to  democracy  at  the  time  of 
the  French  Eevolution  offer  a  curious  contrast  to  those 
which  are  noticeable  in  the  life  of  England  at  the  same 
period.  The  following  reasons  for  that  contrast  may  be 
suggested.  In  the  first  place  the  National  Church  in 
England  had  held  a  secure  place  in  the  hearts  of  English- 
men ever  since  the  time  of  the  glorious  Eevolution  of  1688 ; 
and  though  the  eighteenth  century  witnessed  a  decline  in 
her  activity  and  an  alarming  increase  in  the  stipends  and 
sinecures  enjoyed  by  the  higher  clergy,  still  these  abuses 
were  slight  compared  with  those  of  the  Church  of  France. 
Further,  the  Wesleyan  revival  then  began  powerfully  to 
influence  the  Established  Church  for  good ;  and  the  work  of 
many  devoted  preachers  brought  home  to  the  people  a  vital 
knowledge  of  evangelical  truth.  Further,  the  names  of 
Clarkson,  Wilberforce  and  John  Howard  will  remind  the 
reader  of  the  close  connexion  between  evangelical  religion 
and  philanthropy  in  our  land.  Thus,  whereas  in  France  the 
philanthropic  movement  was  mostly  the  work  of  Voltaire 
and  the  philosophers,  in  England  it  was  an  offshoot  of 
reviving  religious  zeal."^ 

*  See  HLH,  pp.  178-183.    Home,  The  Romance  of  Preaching,  pp,  217-251. 

*  Christ  and  Civilization,  p.  440. 

211 


212  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

As  was  shown  in  a  previous  chapter,  the  religious  life 
of  the  country  in  the  eighteenth  century  had  lost  vitality 
and  vigour  as  a  result  of  the  Illumination.  Irreligion  and 
immorality  went  hand  in  hand  throughout  the  land. 
Among  dissenters  as- well  as  churchmen  the  salt  had  lost 
its  savour ;  exceptions  there  were,  as  God  leaves  not  Him- 
self without  witness  in  any  age  of  the  history  of  the 
Church ;  but  speaking  in  general  terms  it  is  no  exaggera- 
tion to  say  that  religion  was  at  the  lowest  ebb,  when 
Wesley  and  Whitefield  turned  the  tide  to  full  flood. 

2.  John  Wesley  (1703-1791)^  was  deeply  religious 
from  his  youth.  (1)  At  Oxford  he  became  the  soul  of 
the  small  society,  founded  by  his  brother  Charles,  among 
some  seriously-minded  students  for  the  cultivation  of  the 
devout  life.  Their  nickname,  Methodists,  was  afterwards 
adopted  by  the  world-wide  community  which,  as  a  result 
of  his  preaching,  came  into  being.  Yet  before  he  could 
become  the  human  instrument  of  the  Divine  Spirit  in 
the  Evangelical  Eevival  he  needed  a  fresh  experience 
of  the  Divine  grace  for  himself.  After  his  return  from 
America  in  1738  he  was  in  great  depression  of  spirit; 
he  met  Peter  Bohler,  who  had  come  to  start  a  Moravian 
society  in  London. 

"The  Wesleys,  having  met  Bohler  at  the  house  of  a 
Dutch  merchant,  rendered  him  such  services  as  his  position 
in  a  strange  land  appeared  to  require.  John  Wesley  pro- 
cured him  lodgings,  Charles  Wesley  taught  him  English. 
By  way  of  return,  Peter  Bohler  taught  both  John  and 
Charles  Wesley  the  meaning  of  faith.  In  a  letter  to 
Zinzendorf  he  diagnosed  their  case  as  follows : — The  elder 
was  a  good-natured  man,  who  knew  that  he  did  not  properly 
believe  on  the  Saviour,  and  was  willing  to  be  taught,  while 
the  younger  was  very  much  distressed  in  mind,  but  did  not 
know  how  he  should  begin  to  be  acquainted  with  the 
Saviour."  ^ 

They  both  had  intellectual  belief  and  practical  obedi- 
ence ;  what  they  lacked  was  the  trust  of  the  heart,  the 

1  See  DHP  ii.  yp.  315-326.     See  bibliography  there. 
'  F.  J.  Snell,  Wesley  and  Methodism,  p.  53. 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONARIES  213 

comfort  and  the  joy  of  the  assurance  of  salvation.  On 
the  necessity  of  this  Bbhler  insisted ;  and  the  possibility 
of  the  instant  possession  of  this  he  asserted.  It  was  at 
one  of  the  meetings  of  the  Moravians,  on  24th  May  1738, 
while  Luther's  Preface  to  his  Commentary  on  Romans  was 
being  read,  that  John  Wesley  "  felt  his  heart  strangely 
warmed,"  and  that  he  became  sure  "  that  his  sins  were 
freely  forgiven."  This  emotional  crisis  had  both  intellectual 
and  practical  consequences :  it  gave  new  content  to  his 
theology,  and  fresh  motive  to  his  ministry. 

(2)  He  soon  parted  from  his  teacher  on  the  question 
of  works ;  while  teaching  that  justification  is  by  faith 
alone  without  works,  he  could  not  accept  fully  the  Moravian 
quietism,  and  insisted  on  works  as  not  negligible,  but  as 
the  necessary  fruit  of  saving  faith.  For  no  less  than  in 
conversion  did  he  see  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit  in 
sanctification. 

*'  This  faith  in  the  living  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  not 
anything  ascribed  to  unaided  human  agency,  was  the  secret 
of  the  emphasis  which  was  laid  on  Assurance  as  a  privilege 
attainable  by  all  believers.  From  the  same  source  sprang 
the  Wesleyan  doctrine  of  Perfection.  All  believers  may 
attain  to  a  perfection,  which,  however,  is  not  a  legal  but  a 
Christian  perfection.  It  is  a  state  where  love  to  God  and 
man  reigns  continuously,  where  there  are  no  presumptuous 
sins,  yet  where  there  are  still  involuntary  negligences  and 
ignorances,  transgressions  of  the  perfect  law,  for  which, 
therefore,  forgiveness  through  the  Atonement  is  requisite."  ^ 

The  Spirit  of  God,  received  through  faith  in  Christ, 
both  assures  forgiveness  and  secures  holiness;  imparts  the 
grace  of  God  and  the  power  for  goodness ;  cancels  the 
miserable  past  and  guarantees  the  blessed  future  ;  quenches 
fear  and  enkindles  hope ;  saves  from  death  and  hell  and 
makes  sure  life  and  heaven ;  brings  a  full  and  free 
salvation. 

(3)  This  type  of  theology  has  its  perils ;  and  emotional 
satisfaction  may  be  felt  where  no  personal  transformation 

'  Fisher,  History  of  Christian  Doctrine,  p.  392. 


214  THE   CHRISTIAN   PEEACHER 

has  taken  place :  the  claim  of  perfection  even  in  the 
restricted  sense  of  Tightness  of  purpose  may  result  in  a 
lack  of  moral  sensitiveness  regarding  what  are  deemed 
trivial  failures.  Nevertheless  its  quickening,  arousing,  and 
renewing  influence  when  preached  by  one  who,  like  John 
Wesley,  had  been  made  a  new  creature  ^  by  it,  cannot  be 
doubted  or  denied.  His  zeal  for  evangelism  led  him,  as  it 
afterwards  led  James  Morison,  to  revolt  against  Calvinism, 
and  the  restriction  of  salvation  to  the  elect,  and  to  affirm 
the  universality  of  God's  grace  towards  sinful  mankind. 
His  Arminianism,  however,  laid  stress  more  on  God's  grace 
and  less  on  man's  faith  than  some  representatives  of  this 
school  have  done,  and  has  been  rightly  described  as  "  on 
fire."     It  kindled  a  flame  which  spread  swiftly  and  far. 

3.  Before  dealing  with  Wesley's  preaching,  an  account 
must  be  given  of  his  fellow-labourer,  George  Whitefield 
(1714-1770).  (1)  While  admiring  the  piety  of  the 
members  of  the  "  Methodist  Club "  at  Oxford,  and  even 
taking  part  in  their  godly  exercises,  he  sooner  than  John 
Wesley  discovered  that  his  deepest  need  was  not  met. 
His  change  from  darkness  to  light  may  be  described  in  his 
own  words : 

"  About  the  end  of  the  seventh  week,  after  having  under- 
gone innumerable  buffetings  of  Satan  and  many  months' 
inexpressible  trials  by  night  and  day  under  the  spirit  of 
bondage,  God  was  pleased  at  length  to  remove  the  heavy 
load,  to  enable  me  to  lay  hold  on  His  dear  Son  by  a  living 
faith,  and  by  giving  me  the  spirit  of  adoption,  to  seal  me,  as 
I  humbly  hope,  even  to  the  day  of  everlasting  redemption."  ^ 

This  was  in  1736,  (2)  On  27th  June  his  first  sermon 
was  preached  in  the  church  in  Gloucester,  where  he  had 
been  brought  up. 

"  As  I  proceeded,"  he  says,  "  I  perceived  the  fire  kindle 
till  at  last,  though  so  young  and  amidst  a  crowd  of  those 
who  knew  me  in  my  childish  days,  I  trust  I  was  enabled 
to  speak  with  some  degree  of  gospel  authority.  Some  few 
mocked,  but  most  seemed  for  the  present  struck ;  and"  I 
»  2  Co  5".  '  Quoted  DHP  ii.  p.  309  ;  see  pp.  307-315. 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONARIES  215 

have  since  heard  that  a  complaint  was  made  to  the  bishop 
that  I  drove  fifteen  mad  the  first  sermon.  The  worthy 
prelate  wished  that  the  madness  might  not  be  forgotten 
before  next  Sunday."^ 

4.  On  his  return  from  America  in  1738  he  had  deep 
joy  in  observing  the  change  in  his  two  friends  the  Wesleys. 
(1)  Denied  access  to  the  churches  by  the  suspicion  and 
hostility  of  the  clergy,  he  began  in  February  1739  to 
preach  in  the  open  air  to  the  colliers  at  Kingswood,  near 
Bristol.  It  was  with  difficulty  that  he  persuaded  John 
Wesley  to  join  him,  as  the  ecclesiastical  conservatism  of 
the  latter  made  him  reluctant  to  preach  outside  of  a 
church.  On  Monday,  2nd  April,  however,  Wesley  did 
preach  at  Kingswood  to  about  three  thousand  people,  and 
thus  began  a  ministry  that  lasted  fifty-two  years.  His 
reason  for  the  new  departure  may  be  given  in  his  own 
words : 

"  God  in  Scripture  commands  me,  according  to  my  power 
to  instruct  the  ignorant,  reform  the  wicked,  confirm  the 
virtuous.  Man  forbids  me  to  do  this  in  another's  parish  ;  that 
is,  in  effect  to  do  it  at  all,  seeing  I  have  now  no  parish  of 
my  own,  nor  probably  ever  shall.  Whom  shall  I  hear,  God 
or  man  ?  .  .  .  I  look  upon  all  the  world  as  my  parish ;  thus 
far  I  mean  that,  in  whatever  part  of  it  I  am,  I  judge  it  meet, 
right,  and  my  bounden  duty  to  declare  unto  all  that  are 
willing  to  hear  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation.  This  is  the 
work  which  I  know  God  has  called  me  to ;  and  sure  I  am 
that  his  blessing  attends  it."  ^ 

Well  was  it  for  England  and  the  world  that  the  new 
message  was  forced  to  adopt  the  new  method,  as  it  thus 
reached  an  innumerable  multitude  who  would  otherwise 
have  been  untouched. 

(2)  Except  when  on  visits  to  America,  Whitefield 
made  field-preaching  his  chief  work  till  1769.  Wesley 
was  spared  to  continue  his  manifold  labours  till  1791, 
when  on  23  rd  February  he  preached  his  last  sermon. 
On  Sundays  he  usually  preached  three  times,  and  held 
other  services  besides ;  during  the  week  he  liked  to 
1  DHP  ii.  p.  310.  "  Quoted  DHP  ii.  319  ;  cf.  Acts  13^. 


216  THE   CHKISTIAN   PREACHER 

preach  at  five  o'clock  in  the  morning,  so  that  the  work- 
ing people  might  hear  him  before  their  day's  toil  began. 
In  his  Journal  he  records  that  up  to  21st  April  1770,  he 
had  ridden  over  a  hundred  thousand  miles  on  horseback. 
In  1741  there  was  "a  sharp  contention"  between  Wesley 
and  Whitefield,  as  between  Paul  and  Barnabas,^  as  White- 
field  had  remained  a  Calvinist,  and  was  offended  by 
Wesley's  Arminianism.  Before  death  they  were  recon- 
ciled, and  Wesley  did  due  honour  to  his  companion  in  his 
funeral  sermon.  While  Whitefield's  movement  is  preserved 
in  the  Countess  of  Huntingdon's  Connexion,  Wesley's 
assumed  much  larger  proportions  and  a  much  wider 
diffusion ;  and  against  his  wishes,  as  he  remained  a  loyal 
Churchman,  he  was  forced  by  the  logic  of  facts  to  make 
provision  for  its  continuance  in  the  separate  society  which 
bears  his  name.  One  feature  of  Wesleyan  Methodism 
deserves  mention :  the  pastoral  care  for  the  individual 
converts  which  is  assured  by  the  class  meeting.  This 
religious  revival  did  not  waste  and  lose  itself  in  transient 
emotionalism,  although  there  was  often  excess  of  emotion 
with  abnormal  psychical  conditions ;  but  found  permanent 
embodiment  in  a  Christian  community  "  zealous  of  good 
works."  ^ 

5.  What  were  the  sermons  which  reached  and  changed 
multitudes  ?     Of  John  Wesley's  sermons  Home  writes : 

"  As  evangelistic  discourses  they  are  most  significant  and 
most  surprising.  The  evidences  of  a  mind  steeped  in  classical 
culture,  and  keenly  alive  to  the  thought  of  his  time,  abound 
on  almost  every  page.  Every  perusal  of  them  leaves  me 
wondering  what  it  was  in  them  that  pierced  the  consciences 
of  the  most  hardened  sinners  to  the  quick.  There  is  nothing 
sensational  in  this  evangehsm.  There  is  plain  dealing. 
There  is  much  practical,  sensible  and  serious  exhortation  as 
to  the  sins  that  corrupt  men's  lives  and  harden  their  hearts. 
Of  rhetorical  fireworks  there  is  not  a  trace.  We  are  less 
impressed  by  the  vehemence  than  by  the  calm  strength  of 
them.  Yet  certain  it  is  that  when  this  man  preached,  the 
world  knew  that  the  hour  of  battle  had  sounded.     Those 

»  Acts  1539.  2  Tit.  2". 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONARIES  217 

scenes  of  fury,  which  belong  now  to  English  history,  and  in 
which  Wesley's  life  was  again  and  again  in  peril,  are  the 
tribute  to  the  power  of  his  message.  If  he  had  been  arguing 
for  a  verdict  before  a  society  of  learned  men,  he  could  hardly 
have  reasoned  more  closely  or  employed  more  classical 
illustrations.  .  .  .  Even  as  Wesley  was  singularly  fine  and 
pure  in  controversy  when  he  was  being  assailed  by  a  multi- 
tude of  scurrilous  pens  and  pelted  with  gutter-epithets,  so, 
also  in  the  warfare  which  he  waged  with  error  and  evil  in 
almost  every  market-place  in  the  land,  he  was  content  to  use 
the  Gospel  weapons  of  Truth  and  Love,  and,  as  the  smoke 
cleared  from  the  battlefield,  it  was  seen  that  he  and  his 
forces  were  in  possession  of  the  best  strategical  positions."  ^ 

6.  To  Wesley,  Whitefield  was  a  great  contrast.     "  We  f 
may  accept  the  almost  universal  verdict  that  for  dramatic 
and  declamatory  power  he  had  no  rival  in  his  own  age,  and 
no  superior  in  any  age."  ^     Although  he  used  the  art  off 
the  orator,  which  he  possessed  almost  to  perfection,  his 
purpose  was  not  to  please,  but  to  convert  by  arousing  to 
the   highest    point   the   passions   of   love,   hope  and    fear.  | 
While  he  cast  the  spell  of  his  eloquence  over  the  cultured^ 
and  the  noble,  not  them  alone  did  he  seek  to  reach,  but 

"  the  miners  and  the  puddlers  and  the  weavers ;  the  masses 
of  neglected  and  ignorant  artisans  and  field  labourers,  to 
whom  clergymen  and  ministers  had  ceased  to  appeal,  and 
for  whom  in  all  the  land  there  existed  no  passionate  sym- 
pathy, until  George  Whitefield  arose  and  spoke  to  them,  in 
a  voice  often  choked  with  tears,  of  death  in  sin,  and  life  in 
Christ."  3 

His  deep  conviction  and  intense  emotion  was  allied  with 
"  a  large  command  of  vivid,  homely,  and  picturesque  English, 
and  an  extraordinary  measure  of  the  tact  which  enables  a 
practised  orator  to  adapt  himself  to  the  character  and 
disposition  of  his  audience."  * 

7.  An  example  of  Wesley's  preaching,  which  will 
illustrate  both  content  and  manner,  may  be  taken  from  a 
sermon   on    The   Poverty  of  Reason   (1    Co    14-^).     After 

1  The  Romance  of  Preaching,  pp.  236-237. 

8  Ibid.,  p.  ;i38.  »  Ibid.,  pp.  240-241. 

*  Lecky,  quoted  by  Horue,  p.  239. 


218  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

several  classical  allusions  (Latin  and  Greek  in  the  original 
tongues)  he  states  his  argument : 

"  Reason,  however  cultivated  and  improved,  cannot  pro- 
duce the  love  of  God,  which  is  plain  from  hence ;  it  cannot 
produce  either  faith  or  hope,  from  which  alone  this  love  can 
flow.  It  is  then  only,  when  we  *  behold '  by  faith  '  what 
manner  of  love  the  Father  hath  bestowed  upon  us '  in  giving 
His  only  Son,  that  we  might  not  perish,  but  have  everlast- 
ing life,  that '  the  love  of  God  is  shed  abroad  in  our  heart  by 
the  Holy  Ghost  which  is  given  unto  us.'  It  is  only  then, 
when  we  '  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of  God,'  that  we  '  love 
him  because  he  first  loved  us.'  But  what  can  cold  reason 
do  in  this  matter  ?  It  may  present  us  with  fair  ideas ;  it 
can  draw  a  fine  picture  of  love ;  but  this  is  only  a  painted 
fire.  And  further  than  this  reason  cannot  go.  I  made  the 
trial  for  many  years.  I  collected  the  finest  hymns,  prayers, 
and  meditations  which  I  could  find  in  any  language,  and  I 
said,  sang,  or  read  them  over  and  over,  with  all  possible 
seriousness  and  attention.  But  still  I  was  like  the  bones  in 
Ezekiel's  vision :  '  The  skin  covered  them  above,  but  there 
was  no  breath  in  them.'  And  as  reason  cannot  produce  the 
love  of  God,  so  neither  can  it  produce  the  love  of  one's 
neighbour ;  a  calm,  generous,  disinterested  benevolence  to 
every  child  of  man.  This  earnest,  steady  goodwill  to  our 
fellow-creatures  never  flowed  from  any  fountain  but  grati- 
tude to  our  Creator.  And  if  this  be  (as  a  very  ingenious 
man  supposes)  the  very  essence  of  virtue,  it  follows  that 
virtue  can  have  no  being  unless  it  spring  from  the  love  of 
God.  Therefore,  as  reason  cannot  produce  this  love,  so 
neither  can  it  produce  virtue.  And  as  it  cannot  give  either 
faith,  hope,  love,  or  virtue,  so  it  cannot  give  happiness,  since, 
separate  from  these,  there  can  be  no  happiness  for  any 
intelligent  creatures.  It  is  true,  those  who  are  void  of  all 
virtue  may  have  pleasures,  such  as  they  are ;  but  happiness 
they  have  not,  cannot  have.     No : 

'  Their  joy  is  all  sadness  ; 

Their  mirth  is  all  vain ; 

Their  laughter  is  madness ; 

Their  pleasure  is  pain  ! ' 

Pleasures?  Shadows!  Dreams!  Fleeting  as  the  wind! 
Unsubstantial  as  the  rainbow !  As  unsatisfying  to  the  poor 
gasping  soul 

'As  the  gay  colours  of  an  eastern  cloud.' 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONARIES  219 

None  of  them  will  stand  the  test  of  reflection ;  if  thought 
comes,  the  bubble  breaks  ! "  ^ 

8.  The  closing  appeal  of  Whitefield's  sermon  on  "  The 
Kingdom  of  God  "  (Ro  14^)  illustrates  his  manner. 

"  My  dear  friends,  I  would  preach  with  all  my  heart  till 
midnight  to  do  you  good,  till  I  could  preach  no  more.  Oh 
that  this  body  might  hold  out  to  speak  more  for  my  dear 
Eedeemer !  Had  I  a  thousand  lives,  had  I  a  thousand 
tongues,  they  should  be  employed  in  inviting  sinners  to 
come  to  Jesus  Christ!  Come,  then,  let  me  prevail  with 
some  of  you  to  come  along  with  me.  Come,  poor,  lost,  un- 
done sinners,  come  just  as  you  are  to  Christ,  and  say :  If  I 
be  damned,  I  will  perish  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  Christ,  where 
never  one  perished  yet.  He  will  receive  you  with  open 
arms ;  the  dear  Eedeemer  is  willing  to  receive  you  all.  Fly, 
then,  for  your  lives.  The  devil  is  in  you  while  unconverted ; 
and  will  you  go  with  the  devil  in  your  heart  to  bed  this 
night  ?  God  Almighty  knows  if  ever  you  and  I  shall  see 
one  another  again.  In  one  or  two  days  more  I  must  go,  and 
perhaps  I  may  never  see  you  again  till  I  meet  you  at  the 
Judgment  Day.  Oh,  my  dear  friends,  think  of  that  solemn 
meeting ;  think  of  that  important  hour  when  the  heavens 
shall  pass  away  with  a  great  noise,  when  the  elements  shall 
melt  with  fervent  heat,  when  the  sea  and  the  grave  shall  be 
giving  up  their  dead,  and  all  shall  be  summoned  to  appear 
before  the  great  God.  What  will  you  do  then  if  the  King- 
dom of  God  is  not  erected  in  your  heart  ?  You  must  go  to 
the  devil — like  must  go  to  like — if  you  are  not  converted. 
Christ  hath  asserted  it  in  the  strongest  manner:  'Verily, 
verily,  I  say  unto  you :  Except  a  man  be  born  again  he 
cannot  enter  into  the  Kingdom  of  God.'  Who  can  dwell 
with  devouring  fire  ?  Who  can  dwell  with  everlasting  burn- 
ings ?  Oh,  my  heart  is  melting  with  love  to  you.  Surely 
God  intends  to  do  good  to  your  poor  souls.  Will  no  one  be 
persuaded  to  accept  of  Christ  ?  If  those  who  are  settled 
Pharisees  wiU  not  come,  I  desire  to  speak  to  you  who  are 
drunkards.  Sabbath-breakers,  cursers,  and  swearers  —  will 
you  come  to  Christ  ?  I  know  that  many  of  you  come  here 
out  of  curiosity ;  though  you  come  only  to  see  the  congrega- 
tion, yet  if  you  come  to  Jesus  Christ,  Christ  will  accept  of 

1  CME  X.  pp.  230-231.     Wesley's  fVorfcs  are  published  in  14  vols,  by 
the  Wesleyan  Conference  Offices. 


220  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

you.  Are  there  any  cursing,  swearing  soldiers  here  ?  Will 
you  come  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  list  yourselves  under  the 
banner  of  the  dear  Eedeemer  ?  You  are  all  welcome  to 
Christ.  Are  there  any  little  boys  or  girls  here  ?  Come  to 
Christ,  and  he  will  erect  his  Kingdom  in  you.  There  are 
many  little  children  whom  God  is  working  on,  both  at  home 
and  abroad.  Oh,  if  some  of  the  little  lambs  would  come  to 
Christ,  they  shall  have  peace  and  joy  in  the  day  that  the 
Eedeemer  shall  set  up  his  Kingdom  in  their  hearts.  Parents, 
tell  them  that  Jesus  Christ  will  take  them  in  his  arms,  that 
he  will  dandle  them  on  his  knees.  All  of  you,  old  and 
young,  you  that  are  old  and  grey-headed,  come  to  Jesus 
Christ,  and  you  shall  be  kings  and  priests  to  your  God. 
The  Lord  will  abundantly  pardon  you  at  the  eleventh  hour. 
'  Ho,  every  one  of  you  that  thirsteth.'  If  there  be  any  of 
you  ambitious  of  honour,  do  you  want  a  crown,  a  sceptre  ? 
Come  to  Christ,  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  will  give  you  a 
kingdom  that  no  man  shall  take  from  you."  ^ 

9.  To  the  Evangelical  Revival  also  is  due  the  organi- 
sation of  lay  preaching  as  an  important  auxiliary  of  the 
work  of  the  ordained  ministry.^  (1)  Meu  were  crying  out 
for  the  Bread  from  Heaven  and  the  Water  of  Life ;  and 
there  were  not  enough  fully  trained  preachers  to  carry  the 
divine  provision  for  hungering  and  thirsting  souls.  In 
1738  Joseph  Humphreys  began  to  help  Wesley.  In  June 
1739,  John  Cennick  had  to  take  the  place  of  a  young  man 
who  was  to  have  read  a  sermon,  but  failed  to  appear. 
Wesley  would  not  forbid  his  preaching.  His  reluctance  to 
allow  Thomas  Maxfield,  a  companion  and  servant  of  his 

1  CME  X.  pp.  243,  244. 

^  Among  ministerial  helpers  of  John  Wesley  and  George  Whitefield  may 
be  mentioned  Charles  Wesley  (1708-1788),  who  only  for  a  short  time  devoted 
himself  to  the  itinerant  ministry,  but  was  the  "sweet  singer  of  Method- 
ism"; John  William  Fletcher  (1729-1785),  the  vicar  of  Madeley,  and 
superintendent  of  the  seminary  for  training  preachers  established  by  the 
Countess  of  Huntingdon  at  Trevecca,  an  ardent  controversialist  in  defence 
of  Arminianism  yet  devout  in  spirit,  lovable  and  beloved  ;  Rowland  Hill 
(1745-1833),  who  on  account  of  his  itinerant  ministry  was  refused  ordination, 
and  at  last  found  a  permanent  sphere  of  influence  at  Surrey  Chapel,  where 
many  flocked  to  hear  his  earnest  and  evangelical,  but  original  and  oft  quaint 
preaching,  vivid  in  imagination,  relieved  by  wit  and  humour,  and  intense 
in  conviction,  coming,  as  Sheridan  described  it,  "hot  from  the  heart." 
(See  DHP  ii.  326-329.) 


EVANGELISTS   AND   MISSIONARIES  221 

brother  Charles,  was  only  overcome  by  the  evidence  of  the 
Spirit's  presence  and  power  in  him,  which  drew  the  con- 
fession :  "  It  is  the  Lord ;  let  Him  do  what  seemeth  Him 
good." 

(2)  In  his  Further  Appeal  to  Men  of  Reason  and 
Religion,  he  defended  his  use  of  such  agency  on  the  ground 
of  the  manifest  divine  approval  shown  in  the  abounding 
fruit  of  these  labours.  He  asserted  their  competence  in 
the  one  thing  needful,  their  personal  experience  of  the 
Gospel  they  preached ;  and,  scholar  as  he  was,  carried  his 
appeal  to  the  court  of  Church  history.  Despite  prejudice 
and  opposition,  and  to  begin  with  even  his  own  inclinations, 
he  continued  to  use  all  who  were  willing  and  fit  to  spread 
the  good  news  of  salvation. 

(3)  John  Haime,  the  dragoon,  became  a  kind  of  chap- 
lain to  his  regiment,  and  his  influence  spread  through- 
out the  Army,  as  the  Commander-in-Chief,  the  Duke  of 
Cumberland,  gave  him  permission  to  preach  anywhere. 
Howell  Harris  (1714-1773),  who  was  refused  ordination, 
was  the  Apostle  of  Wales,  and,  though  much  persecuted, 
saw  his  native  land  thoroughly  changed.  The  movement 
crossed  the  Atlantic  in  the  person  of  Philip  Embury,  who 
was  aroused  from  his  despondency  and  inactivity  by  Barbara 
Heck,  to  preach  the  first  Methodist  sermon  in  New  York. 
His  hands  were  strengthened  by  Captain  Webb,  one  of 
Wesley's  converts.  These  were  but  the  first-fruits  of  an 
abundant  harvest  of  lay  endeavour  wliich  has  been  an 
untold  blessing  to  mankind.^ 


II. 

1,  The  religious  revival  of  the  eighteenth  century  was 
not  confined  to  the  Methodist  community.  (1)  While 
Whitefield  cannot  be  claimed  as  the  founder  of  the  evan- 
gelical school  in  the  Church  of  England,  it  felt  his  stimulus. 
John  Newton  (1725-1807),2  the  friend  of  Cowper,  had  no 

^  See  Telford's  A  History  of  Lay  Preaching,  chap.  v. 
«  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  306-307. 


222  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

great  gifts  nor  much  art  as  a  preacher,  but  his  own  deliver- 
ance from  a  very  sinful  life  gave  him  power  in  the  pulpit 
in  dealing  with  those  who  were  feeling  the  pangs  of 
remorse.  William  Wilberforce  (1759-1833)  as  an  orator 
and  statesman  illustrates  the  influence  of  evangelicalism  in 
philanthropy  and  politics.  Wesley's  Arminianism  lessened 
his  direct  influence  on  the  older  dissenting  Churches,  Presby- 
terian, Baptist  and  Independent;  but  as  many  of  the  con- 
verts found  their  way  into  the  membership  of  these  Churches, 
there  was  a  quickening  of  their  religious  life. 

2.  In  1740  Whitefield  came  into  contact  with  the 
movement  in  New  England,  which  had  begun  in  1734  as 
a  result  of  the  preaching  of  Jonathan  Edwards  (1703- 
1758),  and  which  after  a  pause  had  been  renewed  in  1839. 
"  The '  Great  Awakening '  was  accompanied  by  the  advocacy 
of  Calvinistic  doctrines  and  attacks  upon  Arminianism," 
which  with  Arian  and  Socinian  opinions  was  held  to  be 
responsible  for  growing  religious  laxity.  Not  only  was 
Edwards  the  leading  preacher  of  this  movement,  he  was  its 
theologian,  and  the  author  of  the  modified  Calvinism,  known 
as  "  New  England  Theology."  "  Edwards  is  an  example  of 
that  rare  mingling  of  intellectual  subtilty  and  spiritual 
insight,  of  logical  acumen  with  mystical  fervour,  which 
qualify  their  possessors  for  the  highest  achievements  in  the 
field  of  religious  thought."  These  contrasts  appear  in  his 
books  on  The  Will  and  on  the  Spiritual  Affections ;  as  we 
turn  from  the  one  to  the  other  "  it  is  like  passing  from  the 
pages  of  Aristotle  to  a  sermon  of  Tauler."  ^  It  is  with  his 
preaching  we  are  here  concerned. 

"  His  sermons  were  thoughtful  and  argumentative,  yet 
plain  and  searching.  They  were  delivered,  with  little  or  no 
action,  from  the  manuscript,  but  with  that  manifest  depth 
of  conviction  and  of  feeling  which  has  been  likened  to 
'white  heat.' "2 

His  wife  noted  the  contrast  between  him  and  White- 

'  Fisher's  History  of  Christian  Doctrine,  p.  395. 
^  Fisher's  The  History  of  the  Church,  p.  526. 


EVANGELISTS   AND   MISSIONARIES  223 

field,  who  aimed  at  stirring  the  emotions.  Unlike  as  the 
two  men  were,  for  a  time  they  laboured  together,  and 
revivals  resulted  in  many  places  in  New  England. 

"  Physical  manifestations — trances  and  th«  like — some- 
times occurred  while  the  revival  preachers  delivered  their 
discourses.  Other  exhibitions  of  strong  emotion,  as  tears  and 
audible  exclamations,  were  not  infrequent."  ^ 

The  movement  met  with  opposition  even  as  did 
Wesley's  labours  in  England ;  and  Edwards  himself  recog- 
nised that  there  was  unhealthy  excitement,  and  that  many 
converts  fell  away,  and  yet  approved  it  as  a  work  of  the 
divine  grace. 

3.  A  previous  chapter  has  dealt  with  the  "  Marrow " 
movement  in  Scotland,  with  its  issue  in  the  Secession,  and 
the  contrast  between  Evangelicals  and  Moderates.  We 
now  deal  with  the  influence  of  the  Evangelical  Eevival  in 
Scotland. 

(1)  John  Maclaurin  (1693—1754)  was  in  correspond- 
ence with  Jonathan  Edwards,  but  his  evangelicalism  avoided 
all  revivalist  extremes.  The  translator  of  Van  Oosterzee's 
Practical  Theology  says  of  him  :  "  His  one  sermon  on 
Gal  6^*,  if  it  were  the  only  one  in  the  two  little  volumes 
of  his  '  Kemains,'  would  alone  suffice  to  rescue  himself  and 
the  age  in  which  he  lived  from  oblivion."  ^  Blaikie  is 
reported  by  Dargan  as  saying  of  it  "  that  it  is  rather  a 
treatise  than  a  sermon."^  John  Erskine  (1721-1803),  a 
cousin  of  the  founders  of  the  Secession  Church,  had  some 
correspondence  w4th  Wesley,  although  doctrinally  more  in 
sympathy  with  Whitefield.  Walter  Scott,  whose  parents 
belonged  to  Erskine's  church,  has  described  him  in  his 
novel  of  Guy  Mannering.*  Not  eloquent,  he  brought 
learning  and  ability  to  the  service  of  a  message  which  he 
himself  describes :  "  Christ  Crucified  and  salvation  through 
Him ;  the  law  as  a  schoolmaster  to  bring  men  to  Christ ; 
and  exhorting  the  disciplias  of  Jesus  to  adorn  his  doctrine 

*  Fisher's  The  History  of  the  Church,  p.  525.  2  p   j^q^ 

8  DHP  ii.  p.  342.  *  The  passage  is  quoted  DHP  ii.  p.  343. 


224  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

by  the  conscientious  performance  of  every  duty,  ought  to 
be  chief  subject  of  our  sermons."  * 

(2)  Early  in  the  nineteenth  century  there  was  formed 
in  the  Church  of  Scotland  the  Evangelical  Party  to  oppose 
the  dominant  Moderatism.  The  leader  was  Dr.  Andrew 
Thomson,  who  in  1814  became  minister  of  St.  George's 
Church  in  Edinburgh.  His  preaching  there  soon  made  a 
great  change. 

"  Keligion  was  not  in  disrepute  at  the  time  of  Dr. 
Thomson's  appointment.  .  .  .  Some  earnestness  there  was 
in  connection  with  one  or  two  congregations,  which  had 
recently  obtained  ministers  of  evangelical  belief,  faithful 
gospel  preaching,  and  consistent  Christian  walk  and  con- 
versation. But  the  general  atmosphere  was  extremely 
worldly,  cold,  and  indifferent ;  and  church-going,  as  a  rule, 
was  attended  to  very  much  because  it  was  generally  con- 
sidered a  proper  thing  to  be  done.  .  .  .  But  the  preaching  of 
Dr.  Thomson  was  like  a  bombshell  falling  among  the  people. 
Not  only  did  he  give  constant  prominence  to  the  distinctive 
gospel  doctrines  of  grace  and  redemption  by  an  atonement, 
but  in  terms  of  great  directness  and  plainness  of  speech  he 
denounced  the  customs  of  a  society  calling  itself  Christian ; 
and  in  a  marvellously  short  time,  by  his  zeal  and  faithfulness 
under  God,  a  remarkable  change  was  effected  in  the  habits 
and  pursuits  of  many  of  his  people."  ^ 

Into  the  ecclesiastical  conflict  which  resulted  from  the 
religious  awakening  we  cannot  now  enter,  but  must  note  in 
it  the  close  association  of  the  claim  of  the  Church's  spiritual 
independence  with  the  belief  in  evangelical  doctrine. 

4.  The  greatest  personality  in  the  movement  which 
resulted  in  the  formation  of  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland 
in  1843  was  Dr.  Thomas  Chalmers  (1780-1847),^  who 
was  thinker,  teacher,  pastor,  philanthropist,  leader  and 
preacher,  whom  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  regard  as  the 
greatest  man  next  to  John  Knox  in  the  religious  thought 
and  life  of  Scotland. 

1  Quoted  DHP  ii.  p.  348. 

2  Maclagan's  History  of  St.  George's,  quoted  in  Walker's  Scottish  Church 
History,  p.  130. 

8  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  487-495. 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONAEIES  225 

(1)  There  is  a  link  between  him  and  the  Evangelical 
Revival  in  England.  He  entered  on  his  ministry  as  a 
Moderate,  not  worldly  in  aim,  genuinely  conscientious  in 
the  discharge  of  his  duties,  but  not  possessed  by  the  "  holy 
enthusiasm  "  which  afterwards  glowed  in  him  as  a  steady 
flame.  On  the  24th  December  1810  he  began  to  read 
Wilberforce's  Practical  View  of  Ghristianity. 

"  *  As  I  got  on  in  reading  it,'  he  says, '  I  felt  myself  on 
the  eve  of  a  great  revolution  in  all  my  opinions  about 
Christianity.'  Many  things  had  prepared  him  to  receive 
the  light — a  long  illness,  family  bereavements,  lines  of  study 
which  he  had  been  providentially  led  to  pursue,  and  other 
things.  But  through  all  the  Spirit  of  God  was  guiding 
him  ;  and  when  at  last  he  rose  above  the  mists,  he  soon 
compelled  the  country  to  recognize  his  mission  as  that  of 
the  great  religious  leader  of  his  age."  * 

(2)  Confining  ourselves  to  Chalmers  as  a  preacher,  it 
must  be  admitted  that  neither  in  appearance  nor  voice  and 
manner  was  he  specially  qualified  to  excel  in  the  pulpit. 
His  sentences  were  long,  and  he  read  his  sermons.  And 
yet  he  put  into  the  delivery  the  force  and  fervour  of  free 
speech ;  and  the  mastery  of  the  man,  thinker  and  believer 
asserted  itself  over  his  hearers.  He  had  one  peculiarity,  in 
which  a  noted  preacher  of  to-day  bears  him  a  striking 
likeness  :  he  repeated  the  same  idea  with  a  great  variety 
of  expression.  Robert  Hall  states  this  fact  with  a  touch 
of  exaggeration. 

"  Did  you  ever  know  any  man  who  had  that  singular 
faculty  of  repetition  possessed  by  Dr.  Chalmers  ?  Why,  sir, 
he  often  reiterates  the  same  thing  ten  and  twelve  times  in 
the  course  of  a  few  pages.  Even  Burke  himself  had  not 
so  much  of  that  peculiarity.  His  mind  resembles  ...  a 
kaleidoscope.  Every  turn  presents  the  object  in  a  new  and 
beautiful  form,  but  the  object  presented  is  still  the  same. 
.  .  .  His  mind  seems  to  move  on  hinges,  not  on  wheels ; 
there  is  incessant  motion,  but  no  progress."  ^ 

^  Walker's  Scottish  Church  History,  p.  133. 

«  Works  of  Robert  Hall,  vol.  iii.  p.  79  f.,  quoted  DHP  ii.  p.  492. 


226  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

His  powers  as  an  expositor  are  seen  in  bis  sermons  on 
Komans,  and  his  scientific  attainments  in  his  Astronomical 
Discourses. 

(3)  The  most  famous  sermon  is  that  on  The  Expulsive 
Power  of  a  New  Affection,  and  a  short  extract  from  this 
great  utterance  may  justify  the  inclusion  of  Chalmers 
among  the  evangelists, 

"  Nothing  can  exceed  the  magnitude  of  the  required 
change  in  a  man's  character — when  bidden,  as  he  is,  in  the 
New  Testament,  to  love  not  the  world  ;  no,  nor  any  of  the 
things  that  are  in  the  world — for  this  so  comprehends  all 
that  is  dear  to  him  in  existence  as  to  be  equivalent  to  a 
command  of  self-annihilation.  But  the  same  revelation 
which  dictates  so  mighty  an  obedience  places  within  our 
reach  as  mighty  an  instrument  of  obedience.  It  brings  for 
admittance,  to  the  very  door  of  our  heart,  an  affection 
which,  once  seated  upon  its  throne,  will  either  subordinate 
every  previous  inmate,  or  bid  it  away.  Beside  the  world  it 
places  before  the  eye  of  the  mind  Him  who  made  the  world, 
and  with  this  peculiarity,  which  is  all  its  own — that  in  this 
Gospel  do  we  so  behold  God  as  that  we  may  love  God.  It 
is  there,  and  there  only,  where  God  stands  revealed  as  an 
object  of  confidence  to  sinners — and,  where  our  desire  after 
Him  is  not  chilled  into  apathy  by  that  barrier  of  human 
guilt  which  intercepts  every  approach  that  is  not  made  to 
Him  through  the  appointed  Mediator.  ...  It  is  when  He 
stands  dismantled  of  the  terrors  which  belong  to  Him  as  an 
offended  lawgiver,  and  when  we  are  enabled  by  faith,  which 
is  His  own  gift,  to  see  His  glory  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ, 
and  to  hear  His  beseeching  voice,  as  it  protests  goodwill  to 
men,  and  entreats  the  return  of  all  who  will  to  a  full  pardon, 
and  a  gracious  acceptance — it  is  then  that  a  love  paramount 
to  the  love  of  the  world,  and  at  length  expulsive  of  it,  first 
arises  in  the  regenerating  bosom.  It  is  when  released  from 
the  spirit  of  bondage,  with  which  love  cannot  dwell,  and 
when  admitted  into  the  number  of  God's  children,  through 
the  faith  that  is  in  Christ  Jesus,  the  spirit  of  adoption  is 
poured  upon  us — it  is  then  that  the  heart,  brought  under 
the  mastery  of  one  great  and  predominant  affection,  is 
delivered  from  the  tyranny  of  its  former  desires,  and  in  the 
only  way  in  which  deliverance  is  possible."  ^ 

1  WGS  iv.  pp.  66-67. 


EVANGELISTS   AND   MISSIONARIES  227 

5.  Two  other  names  may  be  mentioned. 

(1)  "  The  oratory  of  a  heart  penetrated  with  the  vital 
truths  of  the  Gospels,"  says  Van  Oosterzee,  "  found  one  of 
its  noblest  exponents,  of  this  or  any  other  age,  in  the  person 
of  the  youthful  Eobert  Murray  M'Cheyne  (died  1843),  whose 
'  Memoir  and  Eemains '  and  '  Additional  Remains '  (by  his 
friend,  Andrew  Bouar)  have  passed  through  numerous  edi- 
tions, and  whose  influence  continues  to  exert  itself  with 
blessed  results  both  far  and  near  even  to  the  present  day."  ^ 

(2)  That  unhappy  genius,  Edward  Irving  (1792— 
1834),  took  London  by  storm,  but  soon  lost  his  popularity, 
and  strayed  into  devious  paths. 

"  He  produced  an  excitement,"  says  Dr.  Stoughton, 
"  which,  from  the  extent  to  which  it  prevailed,  the  class  of 
persons  it  affected,  and  the  prophetic  fervour  which  it 
displayed,  rose  to  the  importance  of  a  national  event.  .  .  . 
He  spoke  to  men  at  large,  to  people  of  fashion  in  particular. 
Never  since  George  Whitefield  had  anyone  so  arrested 
attention ;  and  Irving  went  far  beyond  Whitefield  in  attract- 
ing the  respectful,  even  the  admiring,  notice  of  lords,  ladies, 
and  commons  His  name  was  on  every  lip.  Newspapers, 
magazines,  and  reviews  discussed  his  merits ;  a  caricature  in 
shop  windows  hit  off  his  eccentricities."  ^ 

6.  Two  movements  of  religious  revival  in  Scotland 
claim  brief  notice.  In  dealing  with  the  History  of  Con- 
gregational Ivdependency  in  Scotland,  Dr.  James  Eoss  makes 
this  statement : 

"  It  is  significant  that  most  of  the  churches  of  this  order 
came  into  existence  within  the  short  period  of  four  years, 
from  1794  to  1798,  thus  indicating  that  there  must  have 
been  some  common  causes  of  their  origin,  or  rather  of  the 
state  of  mind  and  religious  feeling  of  which  they  were  the 
expression."  "  The  origin  "  of  most  of  these  churches  can 
be  directly  "  traced  to  the  great  evangelistic  movement  that 
took  place  in  Scotland  during  the  last  few  years  of  the 
century,  and  with  which  the  names  of  the  brothers  Haldane, 

1  OPT,  pp.  140-141.     This  was  written  in  1878.     In  the  boyhood  of  the 
writer  of  this  volume  the  memory  of  M'Cheyne  was  still  fragrant  in  Scotland, 
a  Quoted  by  DHP  ii.  pp.  484-485. 


228  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

and  Messrs.  Campbell,  Eate,  Aikman,  and  others  are  asso- 
ciated. Robert  Haldane  has  placed  on  record  that  *  he  was 
aroused  from  the  sleep  of  spiritual  death  by  the  excitement 
of  the  French  Revolution.' "  i 

It  was  when  his  wish  to  go  to  India  as  a  missionary 
was  thwarted  by  the  refusal  of  the  East  India  Company, 
that  he  resolved  to  give  himself  and  his  means  to  work  in 
his  motherland.  A  few  sentences  from  the  Missionary 
Magazine  will  suffice  to  indicate  the  kind  of  ministry 
exercised. 

"  The  advantages  of  missionary  schemes  both  in  England 
and  Scotland  have  remarkably  appeared,  not  only  in  exciting 
the  zeal  of  Christian  people  to  send  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  to 
the  dark  places  of  the  earth,  but  to  use  means  to  extend  its 
influence  at  home.  With  this  view  a  missionary  journey 
has  been  undertaken  in  the  northern  part  of  Scotland,  not 
to  disseminate  matters  of  doubtful  disputation,  or  to  make 
converts  to  this  or  that  other  sect,  but  to  endeavour  to  stir 
up  their  brethren  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come,  and  not 
to  rest  in  an  empty  profession  of  religion.  Accordingly  they 
are  now  employed  in  preaching  the  word  of  life,  distributing 
pamphlets,  and  endeavouring  to  excite  their  Christian 
brethren  to  employ  the  talents  committed  to  their  charge, 
especially  by  erecting  schools  for  the  instruction  of  youth. 
.  .  .  That  their  object  may  be  misrepresented  they  have  no 
doubt.  It  has  already  been  said  that  they  are  going  out 
with  a  design  of  making  people  dissatisfied  with  their 
ministers ;  but  they  can  appeal  to  the  great  Searcher  of 
hearts  that  they  are  determined  in  their  conversation  and 
preaching  to  know  nothing  but  Jesus  Christ  and  Him 
crucified. '  * 

The  converts  won  by  this  preaching  found  so  little 
encouragement  and  help  in  the  existing  Churches  that  they 
were  driven  to  form  small  groups  in  order  to  sustain  by 
prayer  and  study  of  the  Scriptures  their  new  life,  and  out 
of  these  grew  the  Independent  Churches. 

7.  In  time  these  Churches  got  fixed  in  their  theological 
tradition,  and  were  not  ready  to  welcome  any  new  light. 

1  Pp.  42-44.  »  Quoted  by  Ross,  op.  cit.,  p.  51. 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONARIES  229 

Their  most  noted  leader,  Dr.  Ealph  Wardlaw  (1799-1853V 
was  a  moderate  Calvinist ;  he  held  that  the  atonement  of 
Christ  has  universal  sufficiency,  but  that  its  efficiency  is 
limited  to  the  elect  whom  the  Spirit  of  God  moves  by  a 
special  influence  to  exercise  the  faith  that  receives  the  gift 
of  God.2  When  James  Morison  (1816-1893)  and  others 
were  led  by  their  evangelising  zeal  in  presenting  a  full  and 
free  salvation  to  all  men,  to  break  the  hampering  fetters  of 
Calvinism,  the  old  movement  opposed  itself  to  the  new. 
Nine  students  were  expelled  from  the  Glasgow  Theological 
Academy  in  May  1844  for  sympathising  with  the  heresy 
that  not  only  is  the  atonement  sufficient,  but  that  it  is 
also  efficient  for  all  who  believe,  as  God  withholds  His 
enabling  Spirit  from  none.  It  was  in  a  religious  revival 
due  to  his  evangelising  efforts  that  James  Morison  ^  was  led 
step  by  step  to  abandon  his  Calvinism,  until  he  reached  the 
position  of  the  three  Universitalities,  that  God  loves, 
Christ  atones  for,  and  the  Spirit  works  in  all ;  and  the 
preaching  of  this  truth  by  himself  and  others  continued  the 
effective  means  of  religious  revival.  Expelled  for  this  view 
from  the  Secession  Church  in  1841,  he  and  those  like- 
minded  formed  the  Evangelical  Union  in  1843,  which 
sought  to  make  an  evangelical  theology  practical  in 
evangelistic  effort. 

8.  Later  in  the  nineteenth  century  the  outstanding 
evangelist  was  D wight  L.  Moody  (1837-1899),*  who 
visited  Britain  in  1873.  For  two  years  and  three  months 
he  laboured  from  one  end  of  Great  Britain  to  another, 
moving  by  his  simple,  artless,  yet  sincere  and  powerful 
preaching  a  vast  multitude  to  decision  for,  and  consecration 
to  Christ.  Other  evangelists  have  come  and  gone ;  but 
this  was  the  last  of  the  great  revival  movements,  unless  in 
the  mission  field,  to  which  we  now  turn. 

'  See  DHP  ii.  p.  482. 

2  See  Ross,  op.  eit.,  pp.  125-136. 

'  See  The  Life  of  Principal  Morison,  by  Wm.  Adamson,  D.D.  (cc.  v.-xx.). 

*  See  his  Life,  by  his  sou,  W.  R.  Moody. 


230  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

IIL 

1.  Amid  all  the  defects  and  failures  of  the  Christian 
Churches,  the  nineteenth  century  shines  with  an  unquench- 
able glory  as  the  period  of  world-wide  foreign  mission 
work.  The  evangelist  at  home  and  the  missionary  abroad 
are  inseparable,  for  where  there  is  the  enlightened  zeal  of 
the  one  there  must  also  be  the  constraining  motive  of  the 
other.  In  the  previous  chapters  the  closeness  of  this 
connection  has  been  illustrated ;  but  now  we  meet  with  its 
most  conspicuous  instance.  The  missionary  as  well  as  the 
philanthropic  movement  of  the  beginning  of  last  century 
was  one  of  the  blessed  fruits  of  the  Evangelical  Eevival. 
Wesley's  saying  :  "  I  look  upon  all  the  world  as  my  parish," 
is  the  inspiring  watchword  of  the  effort  to  carry  the  Gospel 
to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

(1)  In  the  first  period  of  missions  the  Eoman  Empire 
was  evangelised :  in  the  second  period  the  nations  of 
Europe  were  christianised,  although  in  a  very  superficial 
fashion.  The  records  of  the  Eeformation  are  very  dis- 
appointing as  regards  this  sacred  charge  of  the  Christian 
Church.  Eoman  Catholicism  showed  greater  zeal  for 
propaganda  than  did  Protestantism.  Whatever  we  may 
think  of  his  methods,  Xavier's  labours  demand  that  his 
name  be  remembered ;  and  still  more  Eaimund  Lull's. 
The  missionary  character  of  the  Moravian  Brethren  has 
already  been  noted.  The  work  of  John  Elliot  (1604- 
1690)  and  David  Brainerd  (1718-1747)1  among  the 
Eed  Indians  must  not  be  forgotten.  But  the  world-wide 
movement  of  to-day  has  first  on  its  roll  of  honour  William 
Carey  (1761-1834). 

(2)  In  1784  the  Northamptonshire  Association  of 
Baptist  Ministers  resolved  to  invite  the  Churches  to  join 
in  united  prayer  not  only  for  religious  revival  at  home,  but 
also  for  the  spread  of  the  Gospel  abroad.  "  Let  the  whole 
interest  of  the  Eedeemer  be  affectionately  remembered  and 
the  spread  of  the  Gospel  to  the  most  distant  parts  of  the  hahit- 

'  See  Smith,  Short  History  of  Christiom  Missions,  pp.  136-138. 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONARIES  231 

aUe  globe,  he  the  object  of  your  most  fervent  requests"  ^  On 
this  occasion  Andrew  Fuller  (1754-1815 ),2  a  noted 
expositor,  theologian  and  preacher,  delivered  a  sermon 
on  WalkiTig  by  Faith.  When  the  Baptist  Missionary- 
Society  was  formed  in  1792  he  became  its  first  secretary, 
and  it  owed  much  to  his  leadership.  From  1787,  William 
Carey,  after  reading  Cook's  Voyages  Round  the  World,  began 
to  cherish  the  desire  to  go  as  a  missionary  to  Otaheite ;  but 
his  zeal  was  at  first  repressed  even  by  Andrew  Fuller  with 
the  remark :  "  If  the  Lord  should  make  windows  in  heaven, 
then  might  this  thing  be."  The  Spirit  of  God  could  not 
be  quenched  by  discouragements  in  him,  and  through  him 
others  were  convinced.  In  1793,  Dr.  Kyland,  who  at  first 
opposed  his  project,  confessed :  "  I  believe  God  Himself 
infused  into  the  mind  of  Carey  that  solicitude  for  the 
salvation  of  the  heathen  which  cannot  be  fairly  traced  to 
any  other  source."  On  the  2nd  October  1792,  Carey 
preached  at  Kettering  on  Is  542-3:  "Enlarge  the  place  of 
thy  tent,  and  let  them  stretch  forth  the  curtains  of  thy 
habitations :  spare  not,  lengthen  thy  cords,  and  strengthen 
thy  stakes ;  for  thou  shalt  break  forth  on  the  right  hand 
and  on  the  left ;  and  thy  seed  shall  inherit  the  Gentiles, 
and  make  the  desolate  cities  to  be  inhabited  " ;  and  uttered 
his  two  famous  mottoes,  "  Expect  great  things  from  God ; 
attempt  great  things  for  God."  ^  Such  was  the  impression 
made  that  those  who  heard  the  sermon  founded  the  Baptist 
Missionary  Society.  A  short  time  before,  Carey  had 
published  his  "  Enqwiry  into  the  Obligation  of  Christians  to 
use  Means  for  the  Conversion  of  the  Heathens ;  in  which 
the  Religious  State  of  the  Different  Nations  of  the  World, 
the  Success  of  Former  Undertakings,  and  the  Practicability 
of  Further  Undertakings,  are  considered  " ;  and  thus  some 
of  his  hearers  were  prepared  for  the  impression  made. 

(3)  It  was  fitting  that  Carey  himself  should  be  the 
first  missionary ;  but  he  went  not  to  Otaheite  as  he  had 
desired,  but  to  Bengal     The  East  India  Company  opposed 

*  Quoted  by  Smith,  Short  History  of  Chnstia/)i  Missimis,  p.  156. 
'  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  332-335.  »  Smith,  op.  ciL,  p.  157. 


232  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

all  missionary  enterprise,  and  it  was  under  the  Danish  flag 
at  Serampore  tliat  Carey  and  the  two  colleagues  who  joined 
him,  MarsJiam  and  Ward,  in  scholarship  no  less  than  in 
preaching,  laid  the  foundations  of  Indian  Missions.  For 
forty-one  years  without  break  Carey  laboured  in  Bengal, 
and  died  there,  at  the  age  of  seventy,  on  9th  June  1834. 

2.  Carey  and  the  Baptist  ministers  he  influenced  were 
responsive  to  the  Spirit  of  God,  who  was  imparting  the 
impulse  to  this  new  form  of  service  to  many  besides 
themselves.  (1)  Dr.  Haweis,  chaplain  to  the  Countess  of 
Huntingdon,  was  also  stirred  to  interest  by  the  account  of 
Captain  Cook's  voyages,  and  made  several  attempts,  which, 
however,  were  at  the  time  frustrated,  to  send  missionaries 
to  the  South  Seas.  In  1793  the  Evangelical  Magazine 
was  started  "  to  arouse  the  Christian  public  from  its 
prevailing  torpor,  and  excite  to  a  more  close  and  serious 
consideration  of  their  obligations  to  use  means  for  advancing 
the  Kedeemer's  Kingdom."  ^  As  showing  the  catholicity 
of  the  enterprise,  it  may  be  noted  that  the  editor,  the  Eev. 
John  Eyre,  was  a  Churchman,  and  one  of  the  chief 
supporters  was  the  well-known  Independent  preacher, 
Matthew  Wilks.  Dr.  Haweis  and  Dr.  Bogue  of  Gosport 
now  associated  themselves  with  the  enterprise ;  and  the 
outcome  was  the  foundation  of  the  London  Missionary 
Society,  on  an  inter-denominational  basis,  in  1795.  Dr. 
Bogue  in  the  sermon  preached  on  the  occasion  declared 
that  his  hearers  had  been  attending  "  the  funeral  of 
Bigotry  "  ;  and  added  the  fervent  prayer  :  "  May  she  be 
buried  so  deep  that  not  a  particle  of  her  dust  may  be  ever 
thrown  upon  the  face  of  the  earth." 

(2)  The  first  mission  undertaken  was  to  the  South 
Seas.  In  1796  the  Buff  under  Captain  James  Wilson, 
with  thirty  men  missionaries,  besides  some  wives  and 
children,  sailed  to  the  sound  of  the  hymn,  "Jesus,  at 
Thy  command  we  launch  into  the  deep."  The  troublous 
and  even  tragic  experiences  of  this  missionary  party  cannot 
be  told  in  detail.     After  long  delay  the  dawn  began  to 

1  Quoted  by  Home,  The  St(yry  of  the  L.M.S.,  p.  4. 


EVANGELISTS   AND   MISSIONARIES  233 

break ;  and  the  victory  of  the  Cross  had  begun  in  some 
of  the  islands,  when  one  of  the  great  missionaries  of  the 
Society  arrived.  John  Williams  (1795—1839)  reached 
Tahiti  in  1817;  he  had  the  aspirations  of  the  pioneer. 
"  For  my  part,  I  cannot  content  myself  within  the  narrow 
limits  of  a  single  roof " ;  ^  and  he  pushed  on  from  island  to 
island,  preaching  the  Gospel,  winning  converts  and  starting 
churches,  until  his  death  on  Erromanga.  He  multiplied 
his  own  labours  by  the  employment  of  native  Christians  as 
missionaries,  many  of  whom  have  since  shared  the  glory  of 
martyrdom  with  him. 

3.  The  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel, 
which  had  been  at  work  in  America  since  1700,  became 
a  world-wide  missionary  agency  in  1821.  The  Evangelical 
party  in  the  Church  of  England  in  1799  started  the 
Church  Missionary  Society.  (1)  Most  famous  of  the  early 
Anglican  missionaries  in  India  was  Henry  Martyn  (1781— 
1812),  who  was  aroused  to  interest  by  the  experience  of 
Carey,  and  who  in  1806  landed  as  a  chaplain  in  Calcutta. 
He  at  once  began  the  study  of  Hindustani,  Hindi,  Persian, 
and  Arabic,  and  within  five  years  had  translated  the  New 
Testament  into  the  first  of  these  languages.  Pushing  on 
into  Persia  in  1811,  he  had  in  a  few  months  translated 
the  greater  part  of  the  New  Testament  into  that  language 
also.  As  he  was  returning  home  by  Asia  Minor,  he  died 
at  Tokat,  worn  out  by  his  labours  and  perils.  Short  as 
was  his  career,  although  he  won  only  one  convert,  his 
personality  made  a  deep  impression.^  At  Cambridge  he 
had  graduated  as  Senior  Wrangler ;  and  Sir  James  Stephen 
describes  him  as  he  was  before  the  missionary  call  gave 
unity  to  his  life. 

"A  man  born  to  love  with  ardour  and  to  hate  with 
vehemence,  amorous,  irascible,  ambitious,  and  vain  ;  without 
one  torpid  nerve  about  him ;  aiming  at  universal  excellence 
in  science,  in  literature,  in  conversation,  in  horsemanship, 
and  even  in  dress ;  not  without  some  gay  fancies,  but  more 

*  Quoted  by  Home,  p.  42. 

'  See  Robinson,  History  of  Christian  Missions,  p.  84. 


234  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

prone  to  austere  and  melancholy  thoughts ;  patient  of  the 
most  toilsome  inquiries,  though  not  wooing  philosophy  for 
her  own  sake ;  animated  by  the  poetical  temperament, 
though  unvisited  by  any  poetical  inspiration;  eager  for 
enterprise,  though  thinking  meanly  of  the  reward  to  which 
the  adventurous  aspire;  uniting  in  himself,  though  as  yet 
unable  to  concentrate  and  to  harmonize  them,  many  keen 
desires,  many  high  powers,  and  much  constitutional  dejec- 
tion— the  chaotic  materials  of  a  great  character."  ^ 

What  the  sacred  passion  made  out  of  this  material  the 
brief  record  of  his  life  shows,  and  at  his  death  Lord 
Macaulay  was  constrained  to  offer  him  this  tribute : 

"In  manhood's  early  bloom 
The  Christian  hero  found  a  pagan  tomb ; 
Religion,  sorrowing  o'er  her  favourite  son. 
Points  to  the  glorious  trophies  which  he  won. 
Eternal  trophies,  not  with  slaughter  red, 
Not  stained  with  tears  by  hapless  captives  shed  ; 
But  trophies  of  the  Cross.  "^ 

4.  Alexander  Duff  (1806-1878),  a  Scottish  Presby- 
terian, made  a  new  departure  in  missionary  policy ;  he 
sought  to  influence  the  higher  castes  of  India  by  means  of 
schools  offering  a  liberal  education  in  the  English  language. 
From  1830  to  1863  he  worked  on  these  lines  in  Calcutta. 
"  His  converts  were  not  numbered  by  thousands,  or  even 
by  hundreds,  but  they  included  a  large  number  of  high 
caste  Hindus  whose  brilliant  mental  gifts  and  whose 
strength  of  character  have  exercised  an  immense  influence 
upon  their  fellow-countrymen  in  North  India."  ^ 

A  marked  contrast  was  the  work  of  Kingeltaube,*  who 
was  one  of  a  party  of  six  missionaries  whom  the  L.M.S. 
sent  in  1804.  He  laboured  with  great  success  till  1815 
among  the  pariahs  and  outcasts  of  Travancore,  a  country 
in  which  missionary  work  has  made  marvellous  progress. 

5.  The  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions  was  formed  in  response  to  a  challenge  from  four 

^  Quoted  by  Home,  The  Romance  of  Preaching,  pp.  223-224. 
« IbU.,  p.  227.  8  Robinson,  op.  cit.,  p.  89. 

*  See  Home's  History  of  the  L.M.S.,  pp.  93-97. 


EVANGELISTS   AND   MISSIONARIES  235 

students,  who  asked  "  whether  they  may  expect  patronage 
and  support  from  a  missionary  society  in  this  country,  or  must 
commit  themselves  to  the  direction  of  a  European  society  ? "  ^ 

The  most  famous  afterwards  of  the  four  was  Adoniram 
Judson,  who,  when  refused  the  opportunity  of  work  in 
Calcutta,  which  he  reached  in  1812,  went  on  to  Burma, 
where  he  landed  at  Eangoon  in  1813,  As  on  the  voyage 
he  became  a  Baptist,  the  American  Baptist  Missionary 
Union  was  formed  in  1814  to  support  him.  In  seven 
years  he  baptized  ten  converts.  During  the  war  with 
England  in  1823  he  suffered  much  hardship  for  twenty- 
one  months  in  prison.  He  died  in  1850.  "Judson 
believed  in  peregrinating  as  opposed  to  concentrated 
mission  work,  and  was  doubtful  as  to  the  value  of  mis- 
sionary schools.  His  legacy  to  those  who  came  after  him 
was  the  inspiration  of  a  devoted  life  and  the  translation 
of  the  Bible  into  Burmese."  ^ 

6.  "A  Chinese  politician  who  held  one  of  the  highest 
positions  under  the  new  republican  government,  in  answer 
to  the  question.  When  did  the  Chinese  revolutionary  move- 
ment begin  ?  replied  :  On  the  day  that  Eobert  Morrison 
the  missionary  landed  in  Canton.  The  start  of  Protestant 
missions  in  China,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  earliest 
Protestant  missionaries  were  wholly  devoid  of  poUtical 
aims,  was,  in  fact,  the  introduction  of  a  new  factor  into 
the  political  life  of  China,  the  far-reaching  results  of  which 
can  now  be  seen."  ^ 

(1)  It  was  in  1807  that  Morrison  (1782-1834)*  was 
sent  by  the  London  Missionary  Society  and  landed  at 
Macao.  Amid  disappointments,  difficulties  and  dangers 
which  would  have  daunted  most  men,  he  persevered  in 
secretly  acquiring  the  language,  preparing  a  grammar  and 
dictionary,  and  translating  the  Scriptures.  From  Macao 
he  had  to  remove  to  Canton,  as  permission  for  his  colleague 
Milne  to  reside  was  refused.  In  1813  the  whole  of  the 
New  Testament  was  printed.     While  Morrison  remained 

*  Smith,  op.  eit.,  p.  178.  ^  Robinson,  op.  cit.,  p.  153. 

•  Ibid.,  op.  eit.,  p.  181.  *  See  Home,  op.  cit.,  pp.  121-141. 


236  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

at  Cantou,  Milne  removed  to  Malacca,  where  greater  free- 
dom for  the  work  could  be  secured,  and  the  projected 
college  could  be  founded.  As  interpreter  for  the  East 
India  Company,  not  as  missionary,  Morrison  was  allowed 
to  visit  Peking,  and  so  increase  his  knowledge  of  China. 
He  had  little  opportunity  of  winning  converts,  as  all  his 
work  had  to  be  done  as  secretly  as  possible,  but  in  1814 
his  first  convert,  Tsae  A-Ko,  was  baptized.  While  in 
England  in  1824  and  1825  he  presented  the  Chinese 
Bible  to  King  George  iv. 

"In  June  1834  he  prepared  his  last  sermon  on  the  text, 
'  In  my  Father's  house  are  many  mansions.'  It  was  to  show 
how  much  of  the  joy  of  the  eternal  Home  would  '  consist  in 
the  society  formed  there ;  the  family  of  God,  from  all  ages 
and  out  of  all  nations.'  ...  On  July  31st  the  pioneer  Pro- 
testant missionary  to  China  passed  peacefully  to  his  rest."  ^ 

Small  as  was  the  Chinese  Christian  community  that 
mourned  his  loss,  he  laid  in  his  scholarly  labours  the 
foundations  of  modern  missionary  work  in  China. 

(2)  In  the  footsteps  of  Morrison  as  a  Chinese  scholar 
followed  James  Legge  (1815-1897),^  who  in  1840  became 
head  of  the  college  at  Malacca,  which  was  soon  removed  to 
Hong-Kong,  and  who  in  1876  was  appointed  Professor  of 
Chinese  Language  and  Literature  at  Oxford,  and  translated 
the  Chinese  classics  into  English. 

(3)  For  more  than  fifty  years  Griffith  John^  (1831- 
1912)  laboured  at  Hankow.  He  devoted  himself  to 
evangelisation  and  the  writing  of  books  for  the  Chinese. 
One  who  still  more  largely  contributed  to  the  creation  of  a 
Chinese  Christian  literature  was  Dr.  Timothy  Eichard,*  first 
Chancellor  of  the  Imperial  University  founded  in  1900  at 
Shansi  by  the  Chinese  Government. 

(4)  In  Mongolia  a  mission  was  attempted  in  1817— 
1841,^  but  its  evangelisation  began  with  the  coming  of 
James  Gilmour  in    1870.      About   his   book  Among  the 

1  Home,  p.  141.  ^  ggg  Robinson,  p.  194,  and  Home,  p.  309  ff. 

3  Robinson,  p.  194,  and  Home,  pp.  326-328.  *  Robinson,  p.  196. 

*  See  Home,  pp.  141-145. 


EVANGELISTS  AND  MISSIONARIES  237 

3fongols (1882)  the  reviewer  in  the  Spectator  said:  "Eobiu- 
son  Crusoe  has  turned  missionary,  lived  years  in  Mongolia, 
and  written  a  book  about  it."  ^  Incredible  were  the  hard- 
ships, severe  the  strain,  and  small  the  encouragement  of 
the  work,  but  undaunted  the  resolution,  and  quenchless  the 
hope  of  the  worker.  His  story  is  one  of  thrilling  interest. 
After  his  death  in  1891  the  small  Christian  community  at 
Ch'ao  Yang  wrote  of  him  to  his  orphan  boys : 

"  Pastor  Gilmour  in  his  preaching  and  doctoring  at  Ch'ao 
Yang,  north  of  the  Pass,  truly  loved  others  as  himself,  was 
considerate  and  humble,  and  had  the  likeness  of  our  Saviour 
Jesus.  Not  only  the  Christians  thank  him  without  end,  but 
even  those  outside  the  Church  (the  heathen)  bless  him 
without  limit."  ^ 

7.  Eeference  has  already  been  made  to  John  Williams. 
The  spread  of  the  Gospel  in  the  islands  of  the  Pacific  has 
been  more  rapid  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  world,  and 
owes  much  to  the  labours  and  sufferings  of  native  evan- 
gelists. (1)  In  1871  Bishop  Patteson  was  murdered  on 
Nukapu  Island,  one  of  the  Santa  Cruz  group ;  "  he  was 
credited  with  being  able  to  speak  forty  of  the  Melanesian 
dialects."  3  (2)  In  1858,  J.  G.  Paton,  a  Scottish  Presby- 
terian, began  work  in  Tanna  in  the  New  Hebrides.  In 
1906  he  thus  describe  the  results :  "  Our  dear  Lord  has 
given  our  missionaries  about  20,000  converts,  and  the 
blessed  work  is  extending  among  the  other  cannibals.  .  .  . 
In  one  year  1120  savages  renounced  idolatry  and  embraced 
the  worship  and  service  of  Christ."  * 

(3)  Although  the  Eev.  W.  G.  Lawes  was  the  first 
missionary  of  the  L.M.S.  to  settle  in  New  Guinea  in 
1874,^  it  is  his  colleague,  the  Eev.  James  Chalmers,  who 
joined  him  in  1877,  after  ten  years'  labour  in  Earatonga, 
who  in  public  regard  holds  foremost  place  among  the 
pioneers  in  that  island.  "  Tamate,"  as  he  was  called  by 
the   islanders,  exercised  a  marvellous    personal    influence. 

»  Quoted  by  Home,  p.  383.  '^  Ibid.,  p.  393. 

•  Robinson,  p.  455.  *  Quoted  by  Robinson,  p.  457. 

•  See  Home,  pp.  394-412. 


238  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

"  No  white  mau  had  ever  had  a  more  wide  and  varied 
knowledge  of  the  mainland  of  New  Guinea,  or  visited  more 
tribes,  or  made  more  friends,  or  endured  more  hardships, 
or  faced  more  perils."  ^  E.  L.  Stevenson  knew  him  well, 
and  wrote  of  him  to  his  mother :  "  I  shall  meet  Tamate 
once  more  before  he  disappears  up  the  Fly  Kiver,  perhaps 
to  be  one  of  the  unreturned  brave ;  he  is  a  man  nobody- 
can  see  and  not  love.  He  has  plenty  of  faults  like  the 
rest  of  us,  but  he  is  as  big  as  a  church."  ^  This  foreboding 
(if  such  it  was)  was  fulfilled.  On  7th  April  1901,  Tamate 
and  his  whole  party  were  slain  and  eaten  by  the  savages 
at  the  Aird  River. 

8.  Were  this  volume  a  history  of  missions,  a  chapter 
would  be  devoted  to  the  Martyr-Church  of  Madagascar ; 
where  through  many  years  of  persecution  the  Gospel  was 
spread  and  the  Church  grew  by  the  reading  of  the  Scrip- 
tures and  the  witness  of  the  converts.  We  must  pass  the 
island,  however,  to  the  continent  of  Africa.^ 

(1)  One  of  the  most  fruitful  of  missions  has  been  that 
in  Uganda.  It  was  in  response  to  an  appeal  from  the 
traveller  Stanley  in  1875  that  the  first  missionaries  were 
sent  out.  "  Within  two  years  of  their  start  two  of  the 
original  party  of  eight  had  been  massacred,  two  had  died 
of  disease,  and  two  had  been  invalided  home.  One  of  the 
remaining  two,  Alexander  Mackay,  an  engineer,  became 
the  real  founder  of  the  Uganda  Church."  *  The  company 
of  Christians  was  soon  called  to  pass  through  the  fiery 
furnace  of  persecution ;  and  the  founder,  in  constant 
hardship,  suffering  and  peril,  sustained  their  faith  and 
courage  by  his  words  and  example.  The  numbers  con- 
tinued to  increase.  The  first  bishop,  James  Hanniugton, 
was  murdered  as  he  was  journeying  to  his  diocese.  It  is 
wonderful  that  Mackay  himself  did  not  sufJbr  martyrdom. 
Worn  with  his  cares,  labours  and  sorrows,  he  died  on 
8th  February  1890.     Twenty  years  later  the  number  of 

^  George  Robson,   The  Pacific  Islanders,  p.  292,  quoted  by  Robinson, 
p.  463. 

"  Ildd.,  p.  463.  •  See  Home,  pp.  171-199.  *  Robinson,  p.  348. 


EVANGELISTS  AND   MISSIONARIES  239 

Christians  had  risen  to  70,000.  A  letter  which  he 
addressed  to  the  Christians  of  Uganda  carries  us  back 
in  language  as  well  as  spirit  and  content  to  the  Apostolic 
Age. 

"We,  your  friends  and  teachers,  write  to  you  to  send 
you  words  of  cheer  and  comfort,  which  we  have  taken  from 
the  Epistle  of  Peter  the  apostle  of  Christ.  Our  beloved 
brothers,  do  not  deny  our  Lord  Jesus,  and  He  will  not  deny 
you  in  that  day  when  He  shall  come  in  glory.  Eemember 
the  words  of  our  Saviour,  how  He  told  His  disciples  not  to 
fear  men  who  are  able  only  to  kill  the  body.  ...  Do  not 
cease  to  pray  exceedingly,  and  to  pray  for  our  brethren  who 
are  in  affliction  and  for  those  who  do  not  know  God.  May 
God  give  you  His  spirit  and  His  blessings.  May  He  deliver 
you  out  of  all  your  afflictions.  May  He  give  you  entrance 
to  eternal  life,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  ^ 

On  such  a  foundation  was  the  Church  built. 

(2)  Eobert  Moffat  (1795-1883)2  spent  nearly  fifty 
years  among  the  Bechuana  in  Africa  (1821-1870).  He 
translated  the  whole  Bible  into  Sechuana,  and  established 
an  influential  missionary  centre  in  Kuruman,  including  a 
training  school  for  native  evangelists.  By  his  writings 
and  his  speech,  when  at  home,  he  did  much  to  awaken 
interest  in  the  spread  of  the  Gospel  in  Africa. 

(3)  Greater  in  fame  was  his  son-in-law,  David  Living- 
stone (1813-1873).3  The  world  thinks  of  him  as  one 
of  the  greatest  explorers ;  and  as  such  "  he  travelled 
twenty-nine  thousand  miles  in  Africa,  and  added  to  the 
parts  of  the  world  known  to  civilised  man  nearly  one 
million  square  miles."*  He  thought  of  himself  as  a 
missionary.  "I  am  a  missionary,  heart  and  soul.  God 
had  an  only  Son,  and  He  was  a  missionary.  A  poor,  poor 
imitation  of  Him  I  am  or  wish  to  be.  In  His  service  I 
hope  to  live,  in  it  I  wish  to  die."  ^  His  wish  was  fulfilled, 
and  be  died  on  his  knees  at  Ilala,  to  the  south  of  Lake 

*  Quoted  by  Robinson,  p.  349. 

2  Eobinson,  p.  317  ;  Home,  pp.  72-88. 

3  See  Robinson,  pp.  317-320  ;  Home,  pp.  232-245. 

*  Robinson,  p.  319.  '  Quoted  by  Robinson,  p.  320. 


240  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

Bangweolo,  on  Ist  May  1873.  Because  he  loved  the 
African,  and  won,  as  no  other  probably  had  done,  the  love 
of  the  African,  he  wanted  not  only  to  give  Africa  the 
Gospel,  but  to  save  it  from  the  blighting  curse  of  the 
slave-trade.  Words  cannot  describe  the  greatness  of  the 
man,  the  Christian,  and  the  missionary :  to  him  a  whole 
continent  will  for  ever  be  a  debtor. 

9.  A  few  words  of  justification  of  the  inclusion  of  the 
preceding  pages  may  seem  necessary.  Of  the  preaching 
of  these  men  little  has  been  said,  because  their  work  was 
done  under  conditions  and  by  methods  which  the  Christian 
preacher  at  home  cannot  imitate.  They  all  made  the 
preaching  of  the  Gospel  their  aim ;  but  they  had  also  to 
use  many  other  ways  of  influencing  and  instructing  those 
whom  they  sought  to  win  for  Christ,  and  most  of  their 
preaching  was  not  in  sermons  from  pulpits,  but  in  talk 
wherever  and  whenever  the  door  of  opportunity  opened. 
An  interesting  volume  might  be  written  on  the  methods 
of  presenting  the  Gospel  in  different  lands,  and  some 
materials  might  be  gathered  from  biographies  and  mission- 
ary reports;  but  the  task,  alluring  as  it  is,  cannot  be 
attempted  now,  and  the  writer  claims  no  competence  to 
discharge  it.  But  the  history  of  preaching  would  have 
been  incomplete  for  the  encouragement  and  guidance  of 
any  preacher  had  not  the  outstanding  personalities  in  this 
greatest  enterprise  of  the  Christian  Church  in  our  own 
age  been  presented.  Doubtless  many  others  by  their 
labours  and  sufferings  no  less  deserve  mention ;  but  so 
far  as  the  writer's  knowledge  reaches  and  his  judgment 
guides,  the  names  recorded  here  have  won  the  foremost 
places  in  the  admiration  and  gratitude  of  the  Christian 
Churches.^ 

^  The  notes  and  references  in  Robinson's  History  of  Christian  Missions 
and  Home's  The  Story  of  the  L.M.S.  should  be  consulted  for  the  abundant 
literature  on  this  great  subject. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH. 

1.  In  the  preceding  chapter  some  of  the  preachers  of 
the  earlier  decades  of  the  nineteenth  century  have  been 
mentioned,  as  they  attach  themselves  to  the  great  Evan- 
gelical Kevival  of  the  eighteenth.  As  the  Missionary 
Movement  sprang  out  of  that  Kevival,  the  great  missionaries 
of  the  century  have  also  been  dealt  with.  In  this  chapter 
an  attempt  must  be  made  to  discuss  some  representative 
preachers  of  the  nineteenth  century,  who  have  not  been 
referred  to  in  the  one  or  the  other  connection.  So  great  is 
the  variety  of  type  and  tendency,  that  at  first  sight  it 
appears  a  "  forlorn  hope "  to  bring  them  all  under  one 
banner :  and  yet,  recognising  that  the  description  is  but 
partial,  and  not  at  all  exhaustive,  the  writer  has  ventured 
to  give  the  definite  title  to  this  chapter,  which  to  him  does 
not  seem  inappropriate  or  forced,  and  which  expresses  what 
the  pulpit  specially  needed  to  be. 

2.  So  manifold  and  rapid  were  the  changes  in  the 
thought  and  life  of  mankind  during  last  century,  that  the 
Church  did  not  keep  its  hold  on  the  knowledge  or 
the  activity  of  the  age.  It  may  be  that  we  are  prone 
to  magnify  unduly  what  is  nearest  our  vision,  and  that 
the  breach  between  the  Church  and  the  world  around  was 
not  wider  than  in  many  previous  periods  of  the  history  of 
Christendom ;  but  that  the  Church  was  more  conscious  of 
the  existence  of  the  breach,  and  more  concerned  about  the 
repairing  of  it,  will  not  be  generally  denied. 

3.  Some  of  those  whose  names  will  be  mentioned  had 
no  intention  of  departing  from  the  familiar  ways,  nay, 
made  it   their  endeavour  to  restore  the  old  paths.     Yet 


242  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

even  they  did  not,  and  could  not,  assume  that  the  world 
they  addressed  stood  unmoved  and  unmovable  as  regards 
Christian  doctrine  and  practice.  The  passion  of  their 
protest  against  change  was  the  evidence  of  the  peril  which 
they  were  forced  to  recognise.  Others  responded  to  the 
call  of  the  hour,  and  were  ready  to  go  themselves  and  to 
lead  others  to  "  fresh  fields  and  pastures  new  " ;  although 
not  many  of  the  influential  preachers  of  the  age  repre- 
sented this  more  advanced  tendency.  Most  of  the  noted 
preachers  sought  rather  the  middle  path  of  mediation 
between  the  old  beliefs  and  the  new  knowledge.  Without 
attempting  rigidly  to  separate  from  one  another  men  who 
had  much  in  common,  the  writer  feels  justified  for  conveni- 
ence of  treatment  in  distinguishing  among  the  preachers  of 
the  nineteenth  century  the  conservative,  the  progressive, 
and  the  mediating  tendency.  About  the  placing  of  some 
of  the  preachers  there  can  be  no  difficulty ;  others  in  the 
breadth  of  their  outlook  and  effort  defy  classification.  Any 
arrangement  must  be  at  best  only  an  approach  to,  and  not 
an  attainment  of,  the  exact  truth. 


1.  There  can  be  no  hesitation  about  the  place  to  be 
assigned  to  Cardinal  John  Henry  Newman  (1801-1890).^ 
(1)  The  Tractarian  movement,  of  which  he  was  facile 
princeps,  was  a  resolute,  one  might  almost  say  a  desperate, 
attempt  to  arrest  modern  progress  in  the  Church,  and  to 
bring  it  back  to  Mediaeval  or  even  Patristic  ways. 

"  What  was  to  Thomas  Arnold,"  says  Fairbairn,  "  the 
evidence  of  God's  action  in  the  present — viz.,  its  enlarging 
liberty,  widening  knowledge,  saner  morals,  purer  love  of 
truth  as  truth  and  man  as  man — was  to  Newman,  who  read 
it  through  the  ecclesiastical  changes  he  both  hated  and 
feared,  Liberalism,  or  the  apostasy  of  modern  man  from  God, 
and  constituted  the  need  for  bringing  out  of  a  period  where 
God  most  manifestly  reigned,  forces  and  motives  to  restrain 
and  order  and  govern  the  present."  ^ 

1  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  .^114-518.  ^  Christ  in  Modern  Theologij,  1893,  p.  178. 


'iHE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH      243 

(2)  It  was  contrary  to  his  own  inclinations  that  he  was 
thiust  into  the  leadership  of  the  movement;  but  it  was 
inevitable. 

"Never  was  there  a  religious  vocation,"  says  Sarolea, 
"  more  spontaneous  and  more  certain.  He  understood  that 
he  had  a  care  of  souls  as  soon  as  he  became  conscious  of  his 
power  to  influence  others.  And  that  power  he  soon  ex- 
hibited to  an  extraordinary  degree.  There  are  fifty  points 
in  Newman's  life  and  work  which  have  given  rise  to  ardent 
controversies,  but  there  has  always  been  absolute  unanimity 
on  his  magnetic  gift  in  drawing  to  himself  those  with  whom 
he  came  in  contact.  And  the  faculty  appears  all  the  more 
marvellous  when  we  remember  that  it  was  combined  with  a 
shy  and  reserved  disposition.  .  .  .  Never  was  there  any  man 
more  devoid  of  all  worldly  ambition.  And  it  was  in  the 
fitness  of  things  that  the  greatest  religious  genius  of  his 
century,  the  man  of  whom  even  opponents  like  Gladstone 
only  spoke  in  a  whisper  of  awe  and  admiration,  should  live 
to  the  age  of  seventy-eight  as  a  humble  and  solitary  monk."  ^ 
With  that  personal  magnetism  there  was  joined  "  an  essenti- 
ally sympathetic  intellect,"  for  "  he  was  himself  highly  recep- 
tive and  impressionable"  and  " could  enter  into  the  ideas  of 
others.  This  is  indeed  part  of  his  power.  He  has  always 
read  the  human  soul  as  in  an  open  book."  ^  The  intellectual- 
ism  due  to  the  influence  of  Whately  in  his  earlier  years  in 
Oxford  was  conquered  by  "  the  vitality  of  his  religious  and 
mystical  temperament."^  It  was  as  he  was  preaching  in 
St.  Mary's,  Oxford,  for  five  years  that  his  own  experience 
deepened,  and  his  own  theology  developed.  Six  months  in 
Italy  did  still  more  for  the  unfolding  of  his  genius.  On 
his  return  in  1833  he  resumed  his  work  in  Oxford,  "fully 
conscious  of  his  mission  and  delivered  of  his  doubts."  * 

The  question  why  Newman  became  a  Eoman  Catholic  is 
thus  answered  by  Sarolea.  "  Newman  hecame  a  convert  because 
Catholicism  was  adapted  to  his  temperament,  because  there 
was  a  pre-established  harmony  betiueen  his  character  and  the 
Catholic  system,  because  his  soul  was  naturaliter  catholica."  ^ 

His  career  in  the  Church  of  Eome  we  do  not  need  to 
follow. 

(3)  What  for  the  present  purpose  is  significant  is,  that 

'  Cardhml  Newman,  pp.  44-45  (The  World's  Epoch  Makers). 

» Ibid.,  p.  46.         '  lUd.,  p.  47.  *  Ibid.,  p.  51.         «  Ibid.,  p.  61. 


244  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

it  was  his  five  years'  preaching  in  St.  Mary's,  Oxford, 
that  was  the  dominant  influence  in  the  Tractarian 
movement. 

"  All  contemporary  witnesses,"  says  Sarolea, "  both  friends 
and  opponents  agree  in  their  testimony  as  to  the  indelible 
impression  left  by  these  extraordinary  sermons,  probably 
unique  in  the  annals  of  sacred  oratory :  an  impression  ex- 
plained by  the  beauty  of  the  language,  lucid  and  direct, 
pure  and  simple,  and  devoid  of  all  rhetoric ;  by  the  lofty 
ideals  and  the  wonderful  psychological  insight  into  the  most 
hidden  recesses  of  the  human  soul,  by  the  external  advan- 
tages of  the  orator  and  the  mysterious  charm  emanating 
from  his  whole  personality — a  musical  voice,  quivering  with 
restrained  emotion,  a  manner  in  turn  sweet  and  imperious, 
an  appearance  slender  and  graceful,  emaciated  and  ascetic, 
as  a  messenger  from  that  invisible  world  of  which  he  was 
ever  speaking  to  his  hearers.  And  together  with  the  revela- 
tion of  a  great  spiritual  force  there  was  a  revolution  in  the 
doctrine.  That  doctrine  was  rather  suggested  than  explicitly 
stated ;  but,  whilst  being  asserted  without  dogmatism,  the 
dogma  was  none  the  less  novel;  the  orator  restored  the 
supernatural  life,  the  Sacraments,  the  Visible  Church, 
the  Communion  of  Saints.  He  dwelt  on  the  opposition 
between  the  City  of  God  and  the  world,  between  faith  and 
reason."  ^ 

(4)  One  characteristic  passage  may  be  quoted  in  illus- 
tration. It  is  the  concluding  passage  of  a  sermon  on  "  God's 
Will  the  End  of  Life,"  from  the  text,  "  I  came  down  from 
heaven  not  to  do  Mine  own  will,  but  the  will  of  Him  that 
sent  Me."  2 

"  The  world  goes  on  from  age  to  age,  but  the  Holy  Angels 
and  Blessed  Saints  are  always  crying  Alas,  alas  !  and  Woe, 
woe !  over  the  loss  of  vocations  and  the  disappointment  of 
hopes,  and  the  scorn  of  God's  love,  and  the  ruin  of  souls.  One 
generation  succeeds  another,  and  whenever  they  look  down 
upon  earth  from  their  golden  thrones,  they  see  scarcely  any- 
thing but  a  multitude  of  guardian  spirits,  downcast  and  sad, 
each  following  his  own  charge,  in  anxiety,  or  in  terror,  or  in 
despair,  vainly  endeavouring  to  shield  him  from  the  enemy 

^  Cardinal  Newman,  pp.  24-25  (The  World's  Epoch  Makers). 
2  Jn  6^. 


THE  REPAIREKS  OF  THE  BREACH  245 

and  failing  because  he  will  not  be  shielded.  Times  come  and 
go,  and  man  will  not  believe,  that  that  is  to  be  which  is  not 
yet,  and  that  what  now  is  only  continues  for  a  season,  and  is 
not  eternity.  The  end  is  the  trial ;  the  world  passes ;  it  is 
but  a  pageant  and  a  scene ;  the  lofty  palace  crumbles,  the 
busy  city  is  mute,  the  ships  of  Tarshish  have  sped  away. 
On  heart  and  flesh  death  is  coming ;  the  veil  is  breaking. 
Departing  soul,  how  hast  thou  used  thy  talents,  thy  oppor- 
tunities, the  light  poured  around  thee,  the  warnings  given 
thee,  the  grace  inspired  into  thee  ?  Oh,  my  Lord  and 
Saviour,  support  me  in  that  hour  in  the  strong  arms  of  Thy 
sacraments,  and  by  the  fresh  fragrance  of  Thy  consolations. 
Let  the  absolving  words  be  said  over  me,  and  the  holy  oil 
sign  and  seal  me,  and  Thy  own  body  be  my  food,  and  Thy 
blood  my  sprinkling,  and  let  my  sweet  Mother  Mary  breathe 
on  me,  and  my  angel  whisper  peace  to  me,  and  my  glorious 
saints,  and  my  own  dear  father,  Philip,  smile  on  me ;  that 
in  them  all,  and  through  them  all,  I  may  receive  the  gift  of 
perseverance,  and  die,  as  I  desire  to  live,  in  Thy  faith,  in  Thy 
Church,  in  Thy  service  and  in  Thy  love."  ^ 

2.  Not  all  who  threw  themselves  into  the  Tractarian 
movement  followed  Newman  to  Eome  ;  many  not  only 
remained  in  the  Church  of  England,  but  even  came  out 
into  open  opposition  to  the  claims  of  the  papacy.  The 
most  famous  preacher  of  the  High  Church  Party  in  the 
nineteenth  century  was  Canon  Henry  Parry  Liddon  (1829- 
1890).2 

(1)  The  Bampton  Lectures  on  The  Divinity  of  Christ, 
which  on  very  short  notice  he  delivered  in  Oxford  in  1866, 
put  him  in  the  first  rank  as  a  learned  and  able  theologian 
and  an  eloquent  preacher.  From  1870  till  1882  he  was 
Ireland  Professor  of  Exegesis  at  Oxford ;  and  he  combined 
with  this  a  canonry  at  St.  Paul's,  where,  when  twice  a  year 
he  took  his  turn,  he  preached  to  great  crowds.  A  strong 
High  Churchman,  he  was  opposed  to  the  Broad  Church 
views,  and  declined  to  preach  at  Westminster  Abbey, 
because  Dean  Stanley  threw  the  pulpit  there  open  to 
preachers  of  all  schools.  German  criticisms  he  abhorred. 
His  last  appearance  in  St.  Mary's,  Oxford,  was  to  denounce 

»  WGS  iv.  pp.  229-231.  ^  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  550-553. 


246  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

the  views  of  the  Lux  Mundi  group.^  His  rigid  theology 
and  vehement  polemic  will  affect  the  permanence  of  his 
influence  as  a  teacher ;  but  his  powers  as  a  preacher  will 
continue  to  claim  recognition.  Learning  and  intellectual 
force  were  in  his  preaching  so  combined  with  intense  con- 
viction and  personal  magnetism  as  to  give  him  complete 
mastery  over  his  hearers.  The  outward  graces  of  the  oratoi 
were  his  also :  "  a  handsome  face,  a  graceful  action,  and  a 
ringing  voice."  The  one  word  that  describes  his  preaching 
best  is  loftiness  of  style,  tone,  thought  and  feeling. 
"  Canon  Liddon,"  says  Hoyt,^  "  brings  the  riches  of  exegesis 
and  theology  and  philosophy  to  the  pulpit,  and  gives  to 
the  sermon  the  distinction  of  his  refined  and  spiritual 
personality." 

(2)  In  his  sermon  on  "  Influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  ' 
he  derives  from  the  analogy  of  the  wind  and  the  Spirit  the 
two  characteristics  of  the  Spirit's  working,  freedom  and 
mysteriousness,  and  traces  "  the  import  of  our  Lord's  simile 
in  three  fields  of  the  action  of  the  Holy  and  eternal  Spirit ; 
His  creation  of  a  sacred  literature,  His  guidance  of  a  divine 
society,  and  His  work  upon  individual  souls."  *  A  passage 
may  be  quoted  from  the  beginning  of  the  second  division, 
which  sets  forth  the  presence  of  the  Spirit  of  God  in  the 
history  of  the  Church. 

"  The  history  of  the  Church  of  Christ  from  the  days  of 
the  Apostles  has  been  a  history  of  spiritual  movements. 
Doubtless  it  has  been  a  history  of  much  else ;  the  Church 
has  been  the  scene  of  human  passions,  human  speculations, 
human  errors.  But,  traversing  these.  He  by  whom  the 
whole  body  of  the  Church  is  governed  and  sanctified  has 
made  His  presence  felt,  not  only  in  the  perpetual  proclama- 
tion and  elucidation  of  truth,  not  only  in  the  silent,  never- 
ceasing  sanctification  of  souls,  but  also  in  great  upheavals  of 
spiritual  life,  by  which  the  conscience  of  Christians  has  been 
quickened,  or  their  hold  upon  the  truths  of  redemption  and 
grace  made  more  intelligent  and  serious,  or  their  lives  and 

*  The  writer  was  a  student  in  Oxford  at  the  time,  and  remembers  the 
sensation  produced  by  the  sermon. 

»  The  Work  of  Preaching,  p.  60.  '  Jn  3».  *  WGS  vii.  p.  130. 


THE   REPAIRERS   OF   THE  BREACH  247 

practice  restored  to  something  like  the  ideal  of  the  Gospels. 
Even  in  the  apostolic  age  it  was  necessary  to  warn  Christians 
that  it  was  high  time  to  awake  out  of  sleep ;  that  the  night 
of  life  was  far  spent,  and  the  day  of  eternity  was  at  hand. 
And  ever  since,  from  generation  to  generation,  there  has 
been  a  succession  of  efforts  within  the  Church  to  realize 
more  worthily  the  truth  of  the  Christian  creed,  or  the  ideal 
of  the  Christian  life.  These  revivals  have  been  inspired  or 
led  by  devoted  men  who  have  represented  the  highest  con- 
science of  Christendom  in  their  day.  They  may  be  traced 
along  the  line  of  Christian  history  ;  the  Spirit  living  in  the 
Church  has  by  them  attested  His  presence  and  His  will ; 
and  has  recalled  lukewarm  generations,  paralysed  by  indiffer- 
ence or  degraded  by  indulgence,  to  the  true  spirit  and  level 
of  Christian  faith  and  life."^  He  then  shows  how  these 
movements  illustrate  both  the  freedom  and  the  mysterious- 
ness  of  the  Spirit's  operation.  *'  Sometimes  these  movements 
are  all  feeling ;  sometimes  they  are  all  thought ;  sometimes 
they  are,  as  it  seems,  all  outward  energy.  In  one  age  they 
produce  a  literature  like  that  of  the  fourth  and  fifth  centuries ; 
in  another  they  found  orders  of  men  devoted  to  preaching, 
or  to  works  of  mercy,  as  in  the  twelfth ;  in  another  they 
enter  the  lists,  as  in  the  thirteenth  century,  with  a  hostile 
philosophy ;  in  another  they  attempt  a  much  needed  reforma- 
tion of  the  Church ;  in  another  they  pour  upon  the  heathen 
world  a  flood  of  light  and  warmth  from  the  heart  of 
Christendom."  .  .  .  "The  Eternal  Spirit  is  passing;  and 
men  can  only  say, '  He  bloweth  where  He  listeth.' "  ^ 

3.  The  most  popular  preacher  of  the  nineteenth 
century  was  Charles  Haddon  Spurgeon  (1834-1892).^ 
(1)  Not  only  did  he  gather  crowds  wherever  he  preached, 
but  his  printed  sermons  reached  a  far  wider  circle.  About 
two  thousand  five  hundred  of  his  sermons  have  been  pub- 
lished, and  the  average  sale  of  each  was  25,000  copies ;  they 
have  been  translated  into  many  languages.  He,  too,  stood 
in  the  old  ways,  professing  himself  a  sound  Calvinist,  and 
denouncing  in  no  measured  terms  modern  expositions  of 
the  Christian  Gospel     He  was  neither  a  profound  scholar 

»  GWS  vli.  pp.  184-135.  ^  Ibid.,  pp.  136-138. 

•  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  535-561  ;    Edwards'  Nineteenth   Century  Preachers, 
pp.  121-130  ;  Brown's  P\irilan  Preaching,  pp.  219-228. 


248  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

uor  an  original  thinker,  although  he  was  widely  read,  and 
had  a  very  acute  mind.  His  sermons  were  delivered 
ex  tempore,  and  printed  afterwards  from  shorthand  reports. 
Often  the  immediate  preparation  was  very  short ;  yet  he 
was  always  living,  thinking,  and  reading  for  his  pulpit,  so 
that  the  general  preparation,  to  which  more  importance 
should  be  attached,  was  very  thorough.  It  was  to  no 
empty  treasury  that  he  went  to  draw  abounding  riches 
for  his  pulpit.  He  was,  in  his  own  words,  "  always  in 
training  for  text-getting  and  sermon-making."  His  constant 
study  of  the  Bible  supplied  him  with  more  texts  than  he 
could  use.  He  often  tried  many  a  text  before  he  got  what 
seemed  to  him  the  right  one.  A  text  must  lay  hold  on 
him  so  that  he  could  not  escape  it,  and  he  must  get  hold 
of  a  text  so  that  it  must  speedily  and  surely  yield  up  its 
meaning  to  him  before  he  felt  free  to  preach  about  it.  He 
aimed  at  preaching  in  every  sermon  definite  teaching  on 
the  Christian  salvation ;  but  it  was  not  mere  theology  he 
preached  ;  his  truth  was  often  embodied  in  a  tale,  and  the 
arrow  of  his  appeal  was  winged  with  a  wise  and  witty 
saying.  His  wide  and  keen  observation  of  life,  his  varied 
reading,  supplied  him  with  abundant  illustrations  of  the 
doctrine  he  set  forth.  His  exegesis,  from  our  modern 
standpoint,  may  often  have  been  forced ;  his  construction 
of  his  sermon  faulty,  according  to  rules  of  homiletics ;  but 
"  the  common  people  heard  him  gladly,"  and  he  even 
impressed  hearers  of  culture  and  influence. 

(2)  What  accounts  for  his  marvellous  success  ?  His 
personal  appearance  was  not  attractive,  although,  as  he 
caught  fire  with  his  message,  his  face  shone.  He  had  not, 
as  far  as  one  can  learn  from  reports,  the  personal  magnetism 
some  men  possess.  His  voice  had  clearness  and  strength, 
and  he  could  be  well  heard  in  a  vast  building.  It  had  not, 
however,  the  range  of  expression  which  has  been  so  great  a 
gain  to  many  orators.  His  preaching  was  natural,  without 
any  pulpit  affectation  ;  he  talked  with  fulness  and  freshness 
of  thouglit.  He  knew  how  to  make  even  an  ordinary 
subject  interesting  by  unhackneyed  exposition  and  illustra- 


THE  KEPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH      249 

tion.  "  He  was  a  speaker  of  superb  English,  a  master  of 
that  Saxon  speech  which  somehow  goes  warm  to  the  hearts 
of  men."  *  Not  only  was  such  racy  English  native  to  his 
genius ;  his  early  training  and  surroundings  had  been 
favourable  to  this  gift,  and  he  afterwards  cultivated  it  by  a 
close  study  of  the  masters  of  the  language.  The  secret  of 
his  power,  however,  did  not  lie  here,  although  these  endow- 
ments might  explain  his  popularity.  He  preached  the 
Gospel  of  the  grace  of  God,  which  men  need  and  their 
hearts  long  for,  with  the  distinctness  and  certainty  which 
carries  conviction  to  the  hearers,  because  it  springs  out  of 
the  convictions  of  the  preacher.  He  preached  as  himself 
sure  that  the  Gospel  is  the  power  and  wisdom  of  God  unto 
salvation,  and  that  is  the  will  of  God  by  the  foolishness  of 
preaching  to  save  men.^  And  its  ancient  inexhaustible 
efficacy  was  proved  as  he  preached. 

(3)  We  may  listen  to  him  as  he  sets  forth  the  doctrine 
of  election  as  a  reason  for  the  believer's  Songs  in  the 
Night^ 

"  If  we  are  going  to  sing  of  the  songs  of  yesterday,  let  us 
begin  with  what  God  did  for  us  in  past  times.  My  beloved 
brethren,  you  will  find  it  a  sweet  subject  for  song  at  times, 
to  begin  to  sing  of  electing  love  and  covenanted  mercies. 
When  thou  thyself  art  low,  it  is  well  to  sing  of  the  fountain- 
head  of  mercy,  of  that  blest  decree  wherein  thou  wast 
ordained  to  eternal  life,  and  of  that  glorious  Man  who 
undertook  thy  redemption ;  of  that  solemn  covenant  signed, 
and  sealed,  and  ratified,  in  all  things  ordered  well ;  of  that 
everlasting  love,  which,  ere  the  hoary  mountains  were 
begotten,  or  ere  the  aged  hills  were  children,  chose  thee, 
loved  thee  firmly,  loved  thee  first,  loved  thee  well,  loved 
thee  eternally.  I  tell  thee,  believer,  if  thou  canst  go  back 
to  the  years  of  eternity ;  if  thou  canst  in  thy  mind  run  back 
to  that  period,  or  ere  the  everlasting  hills  were  fashioned,  or 
the  fountains  of  the  great  deep  scooped  out,  and  if  thou 
canst  see  thy  God  inscribing  thy  name  in  His  eternal  book ; 
if  thou  canst  see  in  His  loving  heart  eternal  thoughts  of  love 
to  thee,  thou  wilt  find  this  a  charming  means  of  giving  thee 
songs  in  the  night.    No  songs  like  those  which  come  from 

1  Brown,  op.  cU.,  p.  225.  ^Tco^^.  »  Job  35^o. 


250  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

electing  love;  no  sonnets  like  those  that  are  dictated  by 
meditations  on  discriminating  mercy.  Some,  indeed,  cannot 
sing  of  election ;  the  Lord  open  their  mouths  a  little  wider ! 
Some  there  are  that  are  afraid  of  the  very  term,  but  we  only 
despise  men  who  are  afraid  of  what  they  believe,  afraid  of 
what  God  has  taught  them  in  His  Bible.  .  .  .  But  if  thou 
hast  not  a  voice  tuned  to  so  high  a  key  as  that,  let  me 
suggest  some  other  mercies  thou  mayest  sing  of ;  and  they 
are  the  mercies  thou  hast  experienced.  What !  man,  canst 
thou  not  sing  a  little  of  that  blest  hour  when  Jesus  met 
thee ;  when,  a  blind  slave,  thou  wast  sporting  with  death, 
and  He  saw  thee,  and  said  :  '  Come,  poor  slave,  come  with 
Me '  ?  Canst  thou  not  sing  of  that  rapturous  moment  when 
He  snapt  thy  fetters,  dashed  thy  chains  to  earth,  and  said : 
'  I  am  the  Breaker ;  I  come  to  break  thy  chains,  and  set 
thee  free '  ?  "  ^ 

4.  A  few  sentences  must  suflfice  for  Thomas  Guthrie 
(1803-1873).2  He  knew  how  to  reach  the  hearts  of  the 
common  people,  and  he  was  a  master  of  what  may  be  called 
pictorial  preaching.  Few  preachers  have  so  aimed  at 
presenting  truth  in  a  tale.  "  An  illustration,"  he  says,  "  or 
an  example  drawn  from  nature,  a  Bible  story  or  any 
history  will,  like  a  nail,  often  hang  up  a  thing  which 
otherwise  would  fall  to  the  ground.  .  .  .  Mind  the  three 
P's.  In  every  discourse  the  pr-eacher  should  aim  at 
Proving,  Painting,  and  Persuading;  in  other  words, 
addressmg  the  Eeason,  the  Fancy,  and  the  Heart."' 

There  are  two  Scottish  preachers  whom  the  writer 
heard  in  his  youth,  and  to  whom  he  is  constrained  to  bear 
his  tribute.  Repeated  references  have  been  already  made 
in  this  volume  to  the  History  of  Preaching  by  Dr.  John 
Ker  (1819-1886).*  He  was  not  only  learned  in  the 
history,  but  himself  skilful  in  the  art  of  preaching.  A 
man  of  varied  culture  and  rare  spiritual  insight,  he  left  the 
impress  of  his  personality  on  many  of  his  hearers,  and  as 
professor  of  Pastoral  Theology  in  one  of  the  Presbyterian 

*  WGS  viii.  pp.  23-25. 

'  See  DHP  ii.  p.  530  ;  Edwards,  op.  cit.,  56-64. 

*  Quoted  by  Edwards,  op.  cit.,  p.  62. 

*  DHP  ii.  p.  571  ;  Edwards,  op.  cit.,  pp.  65-74. 


THE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH      251 

Colleges,  influenced  the  preaching  in  many  a  pulpit.  A 
big  man  in  every  respect,  mentally,  morally,  spiritually,  as 
well  as  physically,  was  Dr  John  Cairns  (1818-1892). 
Rigid  in  his  own  theology,  he  was  charitable  to  all  men. 
Unaware  of  his  greatness,  he  was  simple  and  humble  as  a 
child.  Himself  unmoved  by  the  changing  thought  of  the 
age,  however,  he  failed  with  all  his  powers  to  influence  his 
age  as  he  might  have  done. 

II. 

1.  One  of  the  saddest  and  yet  most  influential  minis- 
tries in  the  pulpit  was  that  of  Frederick  William  Eobertson 
(1816-1853V  (1)  Desiring  to  fulfil  his  Christian  calling 
as  an  officer  in  the  army,  the  seeming  accident  of  the  delay 
in  obtaining  his  commission  led  him,  against  his  own 
inclinations,  to  acquiesce  in  his  father's  wishes  that  he 
should  take  holy  orders.  Having  once  made  the  decision 
he  devoted  himself  whole-heartedly  to  preparation  for  his 
work.  Opposed  to  the  High  Church  movement,  in  revolt 
against  the  narrow  evangelicalism  in  which  he  had  been 
brought  up,  too  ardently  positive  in  his  own  faith  in  Christ 
to  be  at  home  among  Broad  Churchmen,  he  stood  alone. 
Sensitiveness  even  to  morbidness,  about  what  he  regarded 
as  his  own  failures,  and  about  the  antagonism  which  his 
fearless  advocacy  of  what  he  believed  right  and  true 
aroused  made  his  loneliness,  a  martyrdom,  and  bad  health 
increased  the  crushing  burden  that  fell  on  him.  Yet  to 
the  end  he  did  his  work  bravely  and  faithfully.  It  was 
seven  years  after  his  ordination  before  he  found  the  throne, 
from  which  he  exercised  an  ever-widening  rule  over  the 
spirits  of  men,  in  the  pulpit  of  Trinity  Chapel,  Brighton. 
There  he  reached  not  only  the  cultured  and  thoughtful, 
but  also  the  shop  assistants  and  artisans  of  the  town. 
Transparent  in  his  sincerity,  almost  reckless  in  his  courage, 
tender  as  any  woman  in  his  sympathy  with  need  or  sorrow, 

*  DHP  ii.   pp.   620-524  ;  Edwards,  op.  eit.,  pp.  113-120.     Life  and 
Letters  of  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Bobertson,  by  Stopford  A.  Brooke.    London,  1872. 


252  THE   CHRISTIAN   PBEACHER 

blazing  with  anger  against  any  wrong,  the  very  soul  of 
chivalry,  he  threw  his  whole  personality  into  his  preaching. 
Much  he  learned  in  suffering  that  he  taught  in  words  which 
reached  to  the  depths  of  the  soul  in  many  of  his  hearers. 

(2)  Only  one  of  his  sermons  was  published  before 
his  early  death  after  much  pain ;  it  was  entitled  "  The 
Israelite's  Grave  in  a  Foreign  Land,"  and  was  preached  on 
the  occasion  of  the  public  mourning  for  the  widow  of 
William  iv.  in  December  1849.  It  was  not  written  out 
before  dehvery,  but  in  a  condensed  report  for  a  friend  after 
it  had  been  preached.  The  sermons  collected  and  published 
after  his  death  were  preserved  in  the  same  way.  We  do 
not  possess  any  of  them  in  full  as  spoken,  or  as  revised  for 
publication,  and  yet  in  what  would  appear  so  imperfect  a 
form  they  have  exercised  and  still  exercise  an  indescribable 
influence  over  the  choice  circle  of  readers  to  whom  they 
make  their  irresistible  appeal.  They  are  based  on  a 
constant  and  minute  study  of  the  Scriptures ;  they  breathe 
the  spirit  of  intense  devoutuess ;  they  are  most  searching 
in  their  scrutiny  of  the  experience  and  character  of  men ; 
they  are  illumined  by  illustrations  drawn  from  varied  and 
accurate  study ;  their  arrangement  is  logical  and  thus  clear 
and  memorable ;  the  plan  is  thoroughly  thought  out ;  there 
is  no  ambiguity  or  uncertainty  about  the  truth  taught ; 
their  theology,  which  excited  so  much  suspicion  and  hostility, 
while  thoroughly  independent,  the  fruit  of  his  own  medita- 
tion, would  now  be  regarded  as  liberal  evangelical,  having 
its  centre  in  Christ  the  Saviour.  Acceptable  and  attractive 
as  is  the  truth,  it  is  the  personality  through  which  it  comes 
that  gives  to  his  preaching  its  enduring  worth. 

(3)  As  bringing  us  into  close  living  touch  with  the 
man  himself  we  turn  to  his  sermon  on  "  The  Loneliness 
of  Christ."  1 

He  begins  with  the  distinction :  "  There  are  two  kinds  of 
solitude ;  the  first  consisting  of  isolation  in  space ;  the  other 
of  isolation  of  the  spirit."  The  first  division  deals  with  the 
loneliness  of  Christ.     *'  The  loneliness  of  Christ  was  caused 

»  WGS  vi.  pp.  113-130.     The  text  was  Jn  16^^-^. 


THE   REPAIREKS  OF  THE  BREACH  253 

by  the  divine  elevation  of  His  character.  His  infinite 
superiority  severed  Him  from  sympathy;  His  exquisite 
affectionateness  made  that  want  of  sympathy  a  keen  trial." 
His  insight  into  the  human  heart  is  shewn  in  distinguishing 
from  Christ's  loneliness  the  morbid  sense  of  loneliness  some 
people  cherish,  and  in  pressing  home  this  test.  "  Is  that 
because  you  are  alone  in  the  world — nobler,  devising  and 
executing  grand  plans,  which  they  cannot  comprehend; 
vindicating  the  wronged ;  proclaiming  and  living  on  great 
principles;  offending  it  by  the  saintliness  of  your  purity, 
and  the  unworldliness  of  your  aspirations  ?  Then  yours  is 
the  loneliness  of  Christ.  Or  is  it  that  you  are  wrapped  up 
in  self,  cold,  disobliging,  sentimental,  indifferent  about  the 
welfare  of  others,  and  very  much  astonished  that  they  are 
not  deeply  interested  in  you  ?  You  must  not  use  these 
words  of  Christ.  They  have  nothing  to  do  with  you."  After 
dealing  with  his  wonderful  discernment  of  the  mind  of 
Christ  with  one  or  two  of  the  occasions  of  loneliness,  he  in 
the  second  division  makes  the  practical  application  in  shew- 
ing the  spirit  or  temper  of  Christ's  solitude. 

2.  From  Robertson  we  turn  to  a  man  of  equally 
independent  mind,  and  yet  altogether  different  temperament, 
Henry  Ward  Beecher  (1813-1887).^  (1)  His  ideal  of 
preaching  may  be  given  in  his  own  words  as  quoted  by 
Edwards : 

"  To  preach  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ ;  to  have  Christ 
so  melted  and  dissolved  in  you,  that  when  you  preach  your 
own  self  you  preach  Him  as  Paul  did ;  to  have  every  part ' 
of  you  living  and  luminous  with  Christ,  and  then  to  make 
use  of  everything  that  is  in  you  ...  all  steeped  in  Jesus 
Christ,  and  to  throw  yourself  with  all  your  power  upon  a 
congregation — that  has  been  my  theory  of  preaching  the 
Gospel.  ...  I  have  felt  that  man  should  consecrate  every 
gift  that  he  has  got  in  him  that  has  any  relation  to  the 
persuasion  of  men  and  to  the  melting  of  men — that  he 
should  put  them  all  on  the  altar,  kindle  them  all,  and  let 
them  burn  for  Christ's  sake." 

1  Dargan  has  reserved  for  a  third  volume  the  treatment  of  preaching  in 
the  United  States,  so  that  no  reference  to  him  can  be  given.  See  Edwards, 
op.  cit.,  pp.  1-7.  Beecher  gave  the  first  three  courses  of  the  Lyman  Beecher 
Lectures  on  Preaching  in  Yale  University,  1871-1872,  1872-1873,  1873-1874. 


254  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

The  personality  is  here  emphasised,  if  not  over  empha- 
sised, and  it  was  characteristic  of  Beecher  to  give  himself 
with  utmost  freedom  and  force. 

(2)  The  love  of  Christ  dominated  his  theology,  and  his 
wide  knowledge  and  keen  insight  into  men  enabled  him,  as  he 
made  it  his  steadfast  aim,  to  bring  home  to  "  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  men  "  their  need  of  this  Saviour.  He  was  con- 
stantly studying  his  Bible,  the  world  around  him,  and  the 
men  he  met,  reading,  observing,  meditating  with  one  object, 
to  gather  material  for  his  pulpit.  Thorough  as  was  his 
general  preparation,  his  special  preparation  was  very  slight, 
and  only  a  pulpit  genius  could  have  ventured  so  to  make 
ready  for  his  work.  His  Saturday  was  "  a  kind  of  active 
rest-day,"  in  which  he  got  himself  fresh  and  fit  for  the 
tasks  of  Sunday.  "  His  Sunday  morning  sermons  were 
prepared  after  breakfast,  and  the  evening  sermons  after 
tea."  ^  Sometimes  the  outline  of  the  sermon  came  to  him 
only  in  the  pulpit.  Nevertheless  so  great  a  preacher  as 
Phillips  Brooks  regarded  him  as  the  greatest  preacher 
in  America,  and  he  has  even  been  described  as  "the 
greatest  pulpit  orator  the  world  ever  saw."  His  vivid 
imagination  and  his  intense  passion  gave  him  an  extra- 
ordinary dramatic  power.  Without  exaggeration  he  may 
be  regarded  as  one  of  the  greatest  orators  who  have  used 
the  heaven-sent  gift  in  the  pulpit.  He  passed  through 
all  the  horror  and  heroism  of  the  Civil  War,  and  doubt- 
less the  times  helped  to  make  the  man.  Great  events 
should  find  great  voices.  One  of  his  greatest  orations 
was  delivered,  14th  April  1865,  by  request  of  President 
Lincoln,  on  the  occasion  of  the  Eaising  the  Flag  over  Fort 
Sumter.2 

(3)  It  is  more  consonant  with  the  purpose  of  this 
volume,  however,  to  give  a  passage  from  his  sermon  on 
"  Immortality,"  ^  in  which  he  develops  the  argument  from 
the  human  affections,  and  shows  his  tender  insight  into 
the  hearts  of  men. 

1  Edwards,  op.  cit.,  p.  6.  ^  See  CME  i.  pp.  352-374. 

»  WGS  vi.  pp.  3-25.     The  text  is  1  Co  IS^^. 


THE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH      255 

"  I  cannot  believe,  I  will  not  believe,  when  I  walk  upon 
the  clod,  that  it  is  my  mother  that  I  tread  under  foot.  She 
that  bore  me,  she  that  every  year  more  than  gave  birth  to 
me  out  of  her  own  soul's  aspirations — I  will  not  believe  that 
she  is  dust.  Everything  within  me  revolts  at  the  idea.  Do 
two  persons  walk  together  in  an  inseparable  union,  mingling 
their  brightest  and  noblest  thoughts,  striving  for  the  highest 
ideal,  like  flowers  that  grow  by  the  side  of  each  other, 
breathing  fragrance  each  on  the  other,  and  shining  in  beauty 
each  for  the  other ;  are  two  persons  thus  twined  together 
and  bound  together  for  life  until  in  some  dark  hour  one  is 
called  and  the  other  left :  and  does  the  bleeding  heart  go 
down  to  the  grave  and  say,  '  I  return  dust  to  dust '  ?  Was 
that  dust  then  ?  That  trustworthiness ;  that  fidelity  ;  that 
frankness  of  truth ;  that  transparent  honesty ;  that  heroism 
of  love ;  that  disinterestedness ;  that  fitness  and  exquisite- 
ness  of  taste ;  that  fervour  of  love ;  that  aspu-ation ;  that 
power  of  conviction ;  that  piety ;  that  great  hope  in  God 
— were  all  these  elements  in  the  soul  of  the  companion 
that  had  disappeared  but  just  so  many  phenomena  of  matter  ? 
And  have  they  already  collapsed  and  gone,  like  last  year's 
flowers  struck  with  frost,  back  again  to  the  mould  ?  In  the 
grief  of  such  an  hour  we  will  not  let  go  the  hope  of  resur- 
rection. Can  a  parent  go  back  from  the  grave  where  he  has 
laid  his  children  and  say,  '  I  shall  never  see  them  more '  ? 
Even  as  far  back  as  the  dim  twilight  in  which  David  lived, 
he  said,  '  Thou  shalt  not  come  to  me,  but  I  shall  go  to  thee ' ; 
and  is  it  possible  for  the  parental  heart  to  stand  in  our  day 
by  the  side  of  the  grave,  where  the  children  have  been  put 
out  of  sight,  and  say,  *  They  neither  shall  come  to  me,  nor 
shall  I  go  to  them ;  they  are  blossoms  that  have  fallen ; 
they  never  shall  bring  forth  fruit '  ?  It  is  unnatural.  It  is 
hideous.  Everything  that  is  in  man,  every  instinct  that  is 
best  in  human  nature  repels  it.  Is  not  the  human  soul, 
then,  itself  a  witness  of  the  truth  of  immortality  ? " 

3.  When  Henry  Ward  Beecher  died,  Joseph  Parker 
(1830-1902)  was  spoken  of  as  his  successor.^  (1)  An 
eccentric  and  egotistic  personality,  his  genuis  in  the  pulpit 
triumphed  over  all  obstacles.  Without  any  training  of  the 
schools,  he  entered  the  Congregational  ministry ;  but  his 
powers  quickly  showed  themselves  in  his  first  pastorate  at 
1  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  561-567  ;  Edwards,  op.  eit.,  pp.  101-112. 


256  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

Banbury.  He  was  for  eleven  years  in  Manchester  (1858— 
1869),  but  his  name  is  inseparably  linked  with  the  City 
Temple,  London  (1874-1902).  The  two  sermons  on  Sun- 
day and  the  noonday  sermon  on  Thursday  drew  crowds  of 
devoted  hearers;  and  he  reached  a  still  wider  circle  with 
his  books.  Besides  his  own  more  permanent  congregation, 
he  was  constantly  reaching  by  his  influence  the  multitudes 
of  visitors  to  London  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  whom  his 
fame  attracted.  Eough  and  overbearing  in  manner  as  he 
often  was,  his  heart  was  tender  and  gentle.  His  self- 
conceit  was  often  quite  ludicrous ;  and  yet  was  forgotten 
in  the  strength  of  his  faith,  the  fervour  of  his  feelings  and 
the  force  of  his  speech.  Taking  his  own  line  in  theology, 
he  remained  true  and  devoted  to  the  evangelical  verities. 
Unfettered  by  the  technicalities  of  scholarship,  he  delighted 
in  the  exposition  of  the  Scriptures,  in  which  he  displayed 
a  very  fine  moral  and  religious  discernment.  A  rich 
imagination  and  a  keen  humour  were  controlled  by  a 
thoroughly  masculine  intellect.  While  his  style  was  often 
conversational,  yet  it  could  also  rise  to  a  lofty  and  glowing 
eloquence.  His  fertility  of  mind  was  amazing ;  and  his 
sermons  were  full  of  surprises.  The  thunder  and  the 
earthquake  of  vehement  emotion,  anger  or  scorn  against 
evil,  sometimes  expressed  without  due  restraint,  did  not 
exclude  the  still  small  voice  of  comfort  and  entreaty. 

(2)  A  short  sample  of  the  wooing  note  in  his  preaching 
may  be  given.  The  sermon  on  a  "  Word  to  the  Weary  "  ^ 
ends  with  a  tender  appeal : 

"  Did  we  but  know  the  name  of  our  pain  we  should  call 
it  Sin.  What  do  we  need,  then,  but  Christ  the  Son  of  God, 
the  Heart  of  God,  the  Love  of  God  ?  He  will  in  very  deed  give 
us  rest.  He  will  not  add  to  the  great  weight  which  bears 
down  our  poor  strength.  He  will  give  us  grace,  and  in  His 
power  all  our  faintness  shall  be  thought  of  no  more.  Some 
of  us  know  how  dark  it  is  when  the  full  shadow  of  our  sin 
falls  upon  our  life,  and  how  all  the  help  of  earth  and  time 
and  man  does  but  mock  the  pain  it  cannot  reach.     Let  no 

1  The  text  is  Is  50*. 


THE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH      257 

man  say  that  Christ  will  not  go  so  low  down  as  to  find  one 
so  base  and  vile  as  he.  Christ  is  calling  for  thee ;  I  heard 
His  sweet  voice  lift  itself  up  in  the  wild  wind  and  ask 
whither  thou  hadst  fled,  that  He  might  save  thee  from  death 
and  bring  thee  home.  There  is  no  wrath  in  His  face  or 
voice,  no  sword  is  swung  by  His  hand  as  if  in  cruel  joy, 
saying, '  Now  at  last  I  have  My  chance  with  you.'  His  eyes 
gleam  with  love ;  His  voice  melts  with  pity ;  His  words  are 
gospels,  every  one.  Let  Him  but  see  thee  sad  for  sin,  full  of 
grief  because  of  the  wrong  thou  hast  done,  and  He  will 
raise  thee  out  of  the  deep  pit  and  set  thy  feet  upon 
the  rock."  ^ 

One  of  the  Boanerges  could  also  be  the  Barnabas,  as 
this  passage  shows. 

4.  Independent  as  thinkers,  the  preachers  hitherto 
mentioned,  Eobertson,  Beecher,  Parker,  still  held  the 
evangelical  position.  Brief  reference  must  be  made  to 
one  who  represented  with  conspicuous  ability  the  Unitarian 
position,  Dr.  James  Martineau  (1805-1900).^  Dis- 
tinguished as  a  philosophical,  theological  and  critical  writer, 
he  may  also  claim  remembrance  as  a  preacher.  Negative 
as  his  theological  position  appears  to  the  orthodox 
believer  he  was  a  man  of  deep  devoutness  of  spirit.  The 
two  volumes  of  sermons,  Endeavours  after  the  Christian 
Life,  in  which  he  gathered  the  fruit  of  his  ministry  in 
Liverpool,  are  "  unsurpassed  for  beauty  and  charm  by  his 
later  writings,  and  realise  his  ideal  that  a  sermon  should 
be  a  '  lyric '  utterance."  "  His  spoken  addresses  were 
simpler  in  style  than  most  of  his  literary  works."  "  The 
delivery  of  his  sermons  was  vivid  and  even  dramatic,  though 
without  action." 

5.  Without  identifying  their  theological  position  with 
Martineau's,  mention  may  here  be  made  of  the  brothers 
Pulsford,  William  and  John.  William  in  Edinburgh 
(1856-1865)  and  Glasgow  (1865-1886)  and  John  in 
Edinburgh  (1867-1884)  made  a  deep  impression  on  many 
hearers    by   their  devout   mysticism ;    a  tendency  by    no 

1  WGS  vii.  pp.  207-208. 

'^  Didionary  of  National  Biogra/phy,  Supplemeut,  iii.  pp.  146-15] 


258  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

means  common  in  the  pulpit  to-day.^  It  may  be  observed, 
however,  that  the  preachers  who  reach  and  move  the 
multitude  are  those  vs^ho  hold  strongly  and  preach  clearly 
the  Gospel  of  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ  as  Saviour 
and  Lord. 

6.  Although  his  name  might  almost  as  fitly  be  included 
in  the  next  group,  the  representatives  of  the  mediating 
tendency,  on  the  whole  Dr.  John  Caird  (1820-1898)^  may 
be  most  properly  dealt  with  here  as  representing  the 
liberal  movement.  (1)  He  began  as  a  fervent  and  force- 
ful evangelical  preacher.  His  younger  brother's  influence 
probably  led  him  to  recast  his  thought  in  the  Hegelian 
mould,  but  his  later  writings  indicate  a  movement  towards 
the  evangelical  position.  As  the  writer  during  his  student 
days  in  Glasgow  had  the  opportunity  of  hearing  a  number 
of  the  addresses  on  various  themes  which  Caird  delivered 
as  Principal  of  the  University,  he  retains  to  this  day  a  very 
vivid  impression  of  his  mastery  as  an  orator.  His  range 
of  learning,  his  sweep  of  thought,  his  wealth  of  exposition 
or  illustration,  his  dignity  of  diction,  made  one  of  his 
hearera  at  least  feel  as  he  used  to  feel  when  listening  to  a 
grand  symphony.  While  his  fame  by  no  means  rests  on 
one  sermon,  yet  one  of  his  sermons  has  become  more  famous 
than  any  other.  His  sermon  on  "  Religion  in  the  Common 
Life "  ^  was  preached  in  1855  at  Balmoral  Castle,  before 
Queen  Victoria  and  the  Prince  Consort,  and  won  the 
approval  of  the  Royal  hearers. 

(2)  It  seems  inevitable  that  his  preaching  should  be 
illustrated  by  a  quotation  from  this  sermon,  part  of  his 
peroration,  for  we  may  so  describe  the  conclusion  of  his 
sermons. 

"No  work  done  for  Christ  perishes.  No  action  that 
helps  to  mould  the  deathless  mind  of  a  saint  of  God  is  ever 

1  A  rare  spirit,  who  appealed  only  to  a  very  small  circle  of  choice  hearers, 
was  the  Rev.  S.  A.  Tipple  of  Norwood  ;  their  enthusiasm  warrants  this 
mention. 

2  DHP  ii.  pp!  532-533. 

•"  The  text  was  Ro  12",  and  the  treatment  rests  on  the  current  mis- 
representation of  the  first  clause. 


THE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH      259 

lost.  Live  for  Christ  in  the  world,  and  you  carry  with  you 
into  eternity  all  of  the  results  of  the  world's  business  that 
are  worth  the  keeping.  The  river  of  life  sweeps  on,  but  the 
gold  grains  it  held  in  solution  are  left  behind  deposited  in 
the  holy  heart.  '  The  world  passeth  away  and  the  lust 
thereof ;  but  he  that  doeth  the  will  of  God  abide th  for  ever.' 
Every  other  result  of  our  *  diligence  in  business '  will  soon 
be  gone.  You  cannot  invent  any  mode  of  exchange  between 
the  visible  and  invisible  worlds,  so  that  the  balance  at  your 
credit  in  the  one  can  be  transferred,  when  you  migrate  from 
it,  to  your  account  in  the  other.  Worldly  sharpness,  acute- 
ness,  versatility  are  not  the  qualities  in  request  in  the  world 
to  come.  The  capacious  intellect,  stored  with  knowledge, 
and  developed  into  admirable  perspicacity,  tact,  worldly 
wisdom,  by  a  lifetime  devoted  to  politics  or  business,  is  not, 
by  such  attainments,  fitted  to  take  a  higher  place  among  the 
sons  of  immortality.  The  honour,  fame,  respect,  obsequious 
homage  that  attend  worldly  greatness  up  to  the  grave's 
brink,  will  not  follow  it  one  step  beyond.  These  advantages 
are  not  to  be  despised ;  but  if  this  be  all  that,  by  the  toil 
of  our  hands,  or  the  sweat  of  our  brow,  we  have  gained,  the 
hour  is  fast  coming  when  we  shall  discover  that  we  have 
laboured  in  vain  and  spent  our  strength  for  naught.  But 
while  these  pass,  there  are  other  things  that  remain.  The 
world's  gains  and  losses  may  soon  cease  to  affect  us,  but  not 
the  gratitude  or  the  patience,  the  kindness  or  the  resignation 
they  drew  forth  from  our  hearts.  The  world's  scenes  of 
business  may  fade  in  our  sight,  the  sound  of  its  restless 
pursuits  may  fall  no  more  upon  our  ear,  when  we  pass  to 
meet  our  God,  but  not  one  unselfish  thought,  not  one  kind 
and  gentle  word,  not  one  act  of  self-sacrificing  love  done  for 
Jesus'  sake,  in  the  midst  of  our  common  work,  but  will  have 
left  an  indelible  impress  on  the  soul  which  will  go  out  with 
it  to  its  eternal  destiny.  So  live,  then,  that  this  may  be  the 
result  of  your  labours.  So  live  that  your  work,  whether  in 
the  Church  or  in  the  world,  may  become  a  discipline  for  that 
glorious  state  of  being  in  which  the  Church  and  the  world 
shall  become  one  —  where  work  shall  be  worship,  and 
labour  shall  be  rest — where  the  worker  shall  never  quit  the 
temple,  nor  the  worshipper  the  place  of  work,  because  '  there 
is  no  temple  therein,  but  the  Lord  God  Almighty  and  the 
Lamb  are  the  temple  thereof.' "  ^ 

'WGS  vi.  pp.  191-193. 


260  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

7.  In  connection  with  John  Caird,  the  writer  is 
constrained  to  mention  his  brother  Edward  Caird  (1835- 
1908),  and  with  his  name  may  be  linked  that  of  Thomas 
Hill  Green  (1836-1882).  Both  were  teachers  of  philo- 
sophy, but  both  exercised  a  potent  moral  and  religious 
influence  on  the  young  minds  brought  into  contact  with 
them.  They  both  gave  addresses  on  topics  usually  dealt 
with  in  the  pulpit ;  but,  excellent  as  these  are,  they  are 
not  the  sole  reason  why  these  two  thinkers  should  be  held 
in  grateful  remembrance.  There  are  many  in  Christian 
pulpits  to-day  who  have  abandoned  the  philosophy  which 
they  taught,  but  who  are  worthier  preachers  of  the  Gospel 
as  better  men  because  of  their  influence !  Each  had  been 
a  Socrates  to  those  he  taught. 

III. 

1.  We  may  give  the  first  place  in  the  group  of 
preachers  who  seek  to  offer  the  Gospel  to  the  age  in  its 
own  language,  to  Bishop  Phillips  Brooks  (1838-1893).^ 
(1)  His  lectures  on  preaching  have  already  been  quoted, 
and  he  was  himself  a  conspicuous  example  of  his  own 
definition.  His  personality  was  great,  a  fit  channel  for 
the  Gospel  he  preached.  It  was  not  till  he  had  begun 
his  work,  and  had  passed  "  through  a  period  of  trial  and 
disappointment,"  that  he  discovered  himself  as  born  for 
his  calling  because  of  the  joy  he  found  in  it,  and  the 
powers  that  were  brought  into  free  and  full  exercise  by 
it.  He  was  a  very  hard  worker,  a  very  diligent  student, 
reading  widely  "  science,  literature,  biography,  history, 
poetry " ;  but  the  one  thing  he  did  was  to  preach,  using 
all  else  for  this  end.  Edwards  quotes  a  series  of  striking 
testimonies  to  his  power  and  charm.  Only  one  of  these 
we  may  quote. 

"  Mr.  (now  Lord)  Bryce,  in  comparing  his  preaching  with 
that  of  Wilberforce,  Spurgeon  and  Liddon,  said, '  In  all  these 

^  See  Edwards,  op.  cit.,  pp.  8-18;  Phillips  Brooks,  Memoirs  of  Ms  Life, 
by  Alexander  V.  G.  Allen,  London,  1898. 


THE   REPAIRERS   OF  THE  BREACH  261 

it  was  impossible  to  forget  the  speaker  in  the  words  spoken, 
because  the  speaker  did  not  seem  to  have  quite  forgotten 
himself,  but  to  have  studied  the  effect  he  sought  to  produce. 
With  him  it  was  otherwise.  What  amount  of  preparation 
he  may  have  given  to  his  discourses  I  do  not  know.  But 
there  was  no  sign  of  art  about  them,  no  touch  of  self-con- 
sciousness. He  spoke  to  his  audience  as  a  man  might  speak 
to  his  friend,  pouring  forth  with  swift  yet  quiet  and  seldom 
impassioned  earnestness  the  thoughts  and  feelings  of  a 
singularly  pure  and  lofty  spirit.  The  listeners  never 
thought  of  style  and  manner,  but  only  of  the  substance 
of  the  thoughts.'"  1 

Unlike  Beecher,  Brooks  made  laborious  preparation. 
He  was  always  recording  in  his  notebooks  germs  for 
sermons.  On  Monday  and  Tuesday  he  was  gathering 
the  material  suitable  for  the  development  of  the  subject 
he  had  chosen.  On  Wednesday  he  wrote  the  plan.  On 
Thursday  and  Friday  he  wrote  out  the  finished  sermon. 
By  such  labour  he  found  his  freedom  in  the  pulpit. 
Varied  as  were  his  interests  and  resources,  be  concentrated 
in  his  preaching  on  the  great  central  truths  of  Christianity, 
and  to  this  was  in  large  measure  due  his  attractiveness. 
It  is  not  novelty  of  subject,  but  freshness  of  treatment 
for  which  the  pulpit  calls. 

(2)  No  fitter  illustration  of  the  spirit  and  the  purpose 
of  his  preaching  could  be  found  than  the  last  paragraphs 
of  his  volume  on  Preaching. 

"  It  is  by  working  for  the  soul  that  we  best  learn  what 
the  soul  is  worth.  If  ever  in  your  ministry  the  souls  of 
those  committed  to  your  care  grow  dull  before  you,  and  you 
doubt  whether  they  have  any  such  value  that  you  should 
give  your  life  for  them,  go  out  and  work  for  them ;  and  as 
you  work  their  value  shall  grow  clear  to  you.  Go  and  try 
to  save  a  soul  and  you  will  see  how  well  it  is  worth  saving, 
how  capable  it  is  of  the  most  complete  salvation.  Not  by 
pondering  upon  it,  not  by  talking  of  it,  but  by  serving  it 
you  learn  its  preciousness.  So  the  father  learns  the  value 
of  his  child,  and  the  teacher  of  his  scholar,  and  the  patriot 
of  his  native  land.     And  so  the  Christian,  living  and  dying 

1  Op.  ciL,  pp.  11-12. 


262  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

for  his  brethren's  souls,  learns  the  value  of  those  souls  for 
which  Christ  lived  and  died.  And  if  you  ask  me  whether 
this  whose  theory  I  have  been  stating  is  indeed  true  in  fact, 
whether  in  daily  work  for  souls  year  after  year  a  man  does 
see  in  these  souls  glimpses  of  such  a  value  as  not  merely 
justifies  the  little  work  which  he  does,  but  even  makes 
credible  the  work  of  Christ,  I  answer,  surely,  yes.  All  other 
interest  and  satisfaction  of  the  ministry  completes  itself  in 
this,  that  year  by  year  the  minister  sees  more  deeply  how 
well  worthy  of  infinitely  more  than  he  can  do  for  it  is  the 
human  soul  for  which  he  works.  I  do  not  know  how  I  can 
better  close  my  lectures  to  you  than  with  that  testimony. 
May  you  find  it  true  in  your  experience.  May  the  souls 
of  men  be  always  more  precious  to  you  as  you  come  always 
nearer  to  Christ,  and  see  them  more  perfectly  as  He  does. 
I  can  ask  no  better  blessing  on  your  ministry  than  that. 
And  so  may  God  our  Father  guide  and  keep  you  alway."  ^ 

This  is  written  from  his  own  heart ;  and  he  claims  our 
reverence  and  affection  as  few  of  the  great  preachers  do 
in  the  same  degree,  for  few  there  are  so  utterly  forgetful 
of  self  and  mindful  of  their  hearers  as  he  was. 

2.  Archbishop  William  Connor  Magee  (1821-1891)2 
expressed  his  view  of  the  function  of  the  pulpit  in  the 
words :  "  The  office  of  the  preacher  is  to  smite  the  rock, 
that  the  living  waters  may  gush  forth  to  satisfy  the  thirst 
of  the  age."^  This  description  could  be  applied  to  him- 
self. He  desired  always  in  his  preaching,  which  was 
warmly  evangelical  in  tone,  to  be  the  ambassador  of  God. 
Not  distinguished  either  as  scholar  or  thinker,  he  took  his 
place  in  the  front  rank  of  the  orators  of  the  age.  Liddon 
regarded  him  as  the  greatest  orator ;  others  place  him  only 
second  to  Gladstone  or  John  Bright.  He  was  an  ex  tempore 
speaker,  believed  thoroughly  in  this  method,  and  com- 
mended it  to  others.  In  contrast  to  Magee  may  be  men- 
tioned Dean  Frederic  William  Farrar^  (1831-1903),  whose 
preaching  often   tended  to   become   rhetoric   rather    than 

^  Lectures  on  Preaehing,  pp.  279-281.     AUenson's  Handy  Theological 
Library,  1908. 

2  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  .^48-549.  »  Quoted  by  Edwards,  op.  cit.,  p.  88. 

*  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  557-558;  Edwards,  oji.  cit.,  pp.  45-55. 


THE   REPAIRERS   OF   THE   BREACH  263 

oratory.  He  had  an  amazing  memory,  had  read  very 
widely,  and  adorned  his  sermons  with  quotations,  allusions 
and  illustrations,  which  his  too  fertile  mind  suggested  to 
him  with  a  prodigality  that  seemed  to  know  no  restraint. 
His  scholarship  was  not  always  exact,  nor  was  his  language 
always  measured.  The  rush  of  his  thoughts  and  feelings 
was  allowed  to  carry  him  away,  and  he  did  not  allow 
himself  time  to  prune  his  sermons ;  but  he  was  a  very 
popular  preacher,  who  exercised  a  wide  influence  for  good. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  that  his  Life  of  Christ  did  a  great 
deal  to  diffuse  among  the  people  a  vivid  sense  of  the 
historical  reality  of  Jesus. 

3.  The  claim  of  Dr.  Alexander  Maclaren  (1826-1910)  ^ 
to  be  placed  among  the  greatest  preachers  of  the  nineteenth 
century  cannot  be  challenged.  (1)  Dargan  quotes  the 
testimony  of  the  Bishop  of  Manchester  in  1896.  "In  an 
age  which  has  been  charmed  and  inspired  by  the  sermons 
of  Newman  and  Eobertson  of  Brighton,  there  were  no 
published  discourses  which,  for  profundity  of  thought, 
logical  arrangement,  eloquence  of  appeal,  and  power  over 
the  human  heart,  exceeded  in  merit  those  of  Dr.  Maclaren." 
If  the  occasion,  the  presentation  of  a  portrait,  may  have 
led  the  speaker  to  slight  over-statement,  yet  a  very  generous 
estimate  of  the  value  of  Maclaren's  ministry  is  fully  justified. 
The  words  of  Edwards  may  be  accepted  as  true  and  just. 
"He  possesses  in  an  eminent  degree  the  true  expository 
genius,  the  power  of  vivid  and  glowing  illustration,  a  fervent 
and  established  faith  joined  to  wide  and  generous  culture, 
and  an  attractive  and  fascinating  style.  Keenly  alive  to 
and  fully  abreast  of  all  the  intellectual  questions  of  the  day, 
he  is  singularly  free  from  any  taint  of  modern  scepticism ; 
confident  and  undismayed  in  presence  of  its  loud-voiced 
materialism." 

(2)  Dr.  Brown,  who  had  personal  knowledge  of  him, 
gives  an  analysis  of  the  causes  of  his  success  as  a 
preacher : 

1  DHP  ii.  pp.  572-577  ;  Edwards,  op.  eit.,  pp.  75-87.  ;  Brown's  Puritan 
Preaching  in  England,  pp.  263-288. 


264  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

(1)  "His  teaching  is  firmly  based  upon  and  is  a  careful 
exposition  of  the  revelation  God  has  given  to  us  in  the 
Scriptures.  (2)  His  intelligent  reverence  for  Scripture  is 
accompanied  with,  or  rather  grows  out  of  his  firm  belief 
in  the  historical  facts  related  in  Scripture."  (3)  His  preach- 
ing is  "  intensely  practical  in  character,"  not  in  the  sense  of 
"  ethical  instruction  in  the  duties  of  daily  life,"  although  that 
is  not  absent,  but  of  "  clear  and  definite  instruction  as  to  the 
rationale  of  the  divine  life  in  the  souls  of  men, — its  nature, 
its  beginnings,  its  after  developments,  and  the  spiritual 
forces  by  which  it  is  begun,  and  carried  on  " ;  in  this  teaching 
the  contrast  of  the  natural  and  spiritual  man  is  emphasised ; 
and  the  need  of  faith  in  Christ  for  the  change  from  the  one 
to  the  other  is  asserted.  (4)  Not  only  the  substance  of  his 
preaching  has  given  him  his  place,  but  "also  the  crystal 
clearness  of  his  way  of  putting  the  truth  before  the  minds 
of  his  audience.  (5)  The  great  literary  and  intellectual 
qualities  of  this  man  are  suffused  with  intense  spiritual 
earnestness." 

(3)  The  methods  of  preparation  of  such  a  master  are 
worth  recording.  He  resolved  at  the  beginning  of  his 
ministry  not  to  write  sermons,  but  to  think  and  feel  them, 
not  a  less  but  a  more  arduous  method  of  preparation,  and 
still  more  of  delivery.  A  few  introductory  sentences  were 
written  to  launch  him  out  into  the  deep ;  but  afterwards 
he  spoke  freely  with  only  the  help  of  jottings.  The  heads 
were  also  carefully  worded,  and  the  closing  sentences 
written.  In  the  earlier  years  of  his  ministry  this  method 
involved,  however,  long  pauses,  when  he  was  carefully 
choosing  the  best  words,  and  a  very  short  sermon,  when 
his  matter  gave  out  sooner  than  he  expected.  In  later 
years  these  defects  were  altogether  overcome. 

Instead  of  a  quotation  from  one  of  Dr.  Maclaren's 
sermons,  some  sayings  of  his  on  the  preacher's  calling  may 
be  given. 

"I  have  always  found  that  my  own  comfort  and 
efficiency  in  preaching  have  been  in  direct  proportion  to 
the  frequency  and  depth  of  daily  communion  with  God.  I 
know  no  way  in  which  we  can  do  our  work  but  in  quiet 
fellowship  with  Him ;  in  resolutely  keeping  up  the  habits 


THE   EEPAIREES   OF   THE   BREACH  265 

of  the  student's  life,  which  needs  some  power  of  saying,  No ; 
and  by  conscientious  pulpit  preparation.  The  secret  of 
success  in  everything  is  trust  in  God  and  hard  work."  ^ 

In  answer  to  an  inquiry  about  his  method  of  prepara- 
tion he  wrote : 

"  I  have  really  nothing  to  say  about  my  way  of  making 
sermons  that  could  profit  your  readers.  I  know  no  method, 
except  to  think  about  a  text  until  you  have  something  to 
say  about  it,  and  then  to  go  and  say  it,  with  as  little  thought 
of  self  as  possible."  ^ 

This  thinking  about  a  text  with  him  included,  however, 
careful  exegesis. 

"  A  minute  study  of  the  mere  words  of  Scripture,  though 
it  may  seem  like  grammatical  trifling  and  pedantry,  yields 
large  results.  Men  do  sometimes  gather  grapes  from 
thorns:  and  the  hard  dry  work  of  trying  to  get  at  the 
precise  shade  of  meaning  in  Scripture  words  always  repays 
with  large  lessons  and  impulses."  ^ 

As  Dr.  Brown's  analysis  indicates,  in  Maclaren's 
preaching  that  Christian  truth  is  definitely  conceived  and 
distinctly  expressed,  and  that  truth  goes  forth  to  men 
through  a  personahty  genuinely  and  intensely  Christian. 

4.  The  writer  has  never  met  a  man,  or  heard  a 
preacher,  who  so  deeply  impressed  him  with  the  sense  of 
greatness  as  Dr.  Eobert  William  Dale  (1829-1895);*  and 
he  cannot  pretend  to  write  about  him  with  cool  impartiality. 
(1)  Dale  was  not  so  much  an  expository  preacher  as 
Maclaren,  although  he  was  at  home  in  the  Holy  Scriptures ; 
but  he  was  more  explicitly  doctrinal.  He  took  a  more 
prominent  and  active  part  in  public  life  in  Birmiugham 
than  did  Maclaren  in  Manchester ;  his  civics  and  politics, 
however,  did   not    lower  his  standard,  but    increased    his 

*  Quoted  by  Brown,  op.  cit.,  p.  287. 
2  Quoted  by  Edwards,  op.  eit.,  p.  78. 
^Ibid.,  p.  80. 

*  See  DHP  ii.  pp.  560-561  ;  Edwards,  op.  cit,  pp.  32-44;  Brown,  op. 
cit.,  pp.  231-259.  Life  of  R.  W.  Dale  of  Birmingham,  by  his  Son, 
London,  1898. 


266  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

influence.  His  doctrinal  preaching  was  not  remote  from 
reality,  but  experimental,  rooted  in  his  own  inner  life,  and 
ethical,  applied  to  the  outer  life  of  his  hearers.  His 
independent  and  constructive  contribution  to  theology  does 
not  lie  in  his  lectures  on  the  Atonemetit,  which  do  not 
come  into  close  living  touch  with  the  thought  of  to-day ; 
but  in  his  exposition  of  what  was  distinctive  of  his  own 
inner  lite,  fellowship  loith  the  Living  Christ ;  and  this  should 
make  a  persuasive  appeal  to  present  mystical  tendencies. 
To  the  perils  of  negative  criticism  he  opposes  this  defence 
of  positive  experience.  Himself  compelled  to  restate  his 
own  belief  in  terms  of  modern  thought,  he  regarded  it  as 
a  binding  duty  that  he  should  share  with  others  the  dis- 
tinctness and  assurance  of  faith  which  he  had  himself 
attained.  In  a  time  more  averse  to  doctrinal  preaching 
than  is  our  own,  which  is  being  driven  to  ask  questions 
about  the  ultimate  realities,  he  disregarded  the  fashion  of 
the  hour,  and  preached  theology,  not  divorced  from  ethics, 
for  he  was  one  of  the  sanest  and  strongest  moral  forces 
of  his  age,  and  not  presented  in  a  technical  or  academic 
fashion,  for  he  had  a  robust  common  sense,  and  a  constant 
and  intimate  contact  with  the  busy  world  around  him  ;  but 
as  the  interpretation  of  an  experience  of  the  divine  truth 
and  grace  possessed  by  Christian  believers,  and  possible  to 
all,  which  is  the  source  of  all  worthy  character  and  good 
conduct ;  and  this  he  offered  in  language  which  he  sought 
to  make  intelligible  to  all  his  hearers. 

(2)  His  style  was  influenced  by  Edmund  Burke  more 
than  by  any  other  writer ;  and  in  the  same  manner  bears 
the  marks  of  greatness.  His  sermons  may  be  claimed  as 
literature ;  but  we  must  ask,  is  such  a  style  the  best  fitted 
for  the  pulpit  ?  Dr.  Brown  quotes  Dr.  Fairbairn  as  saying 
that  Dr.  Dale's  words  "  though  written  to  be  spoken,  are 
even  more  fitted  to  be  read  than  to  be  heard ;  for  his  books 
are  as  firm  in  texture,  as  weighty  in  matter,  as  vigorous  in 
expression  as  the  concentrated  thought  of  a  strong  man 
could  make  themu"  ^     Dr.  Brown's  own  opinion  is,  however, 

*  Op.  cit.,  p.  249. 


THE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH      267 

that  they  are  less  fitted  to  be  heard  than  to  be  read,  and 
so  are  not  as  well  adapted  for  the  pulpit  as  they  should  be. 
His  delivery  of  the  sermons  was,  as  a  hearer  testifies, 
adversely  affected  by  this  mode  of  composition.  It  tended 
to  monotony,  and  lack  of  pathos ;  the  intellectual  pre- 
dominated over  the  emotional.  On  great  occasions  when 
thoroughly  aroused,  he  could  profoundly  affect  an  audience. 
Often,  however,  he  moved  in  a  region  beyond  the  common 
reach.  As  a  student  of  theology  the  writer  found  no 
difficulty  in  following  the  course  of  Dr.  Dale's  thought ; 
and  yet  he  must  admit  that  he  sometimes  had  a  feeling  of 
oppression,  as  if  too  great  a  weight  were  being  laid  upon 
his  mind.  It  is  surely  an  evidence  of  the  greatness  of  Dr. 
Dale  that  he  himself  recognised  his  own  limitation,  while 
realising  that  he  could  not  altogether  escape  from  it,  for 
his  habit  had  become  a  second  nature. 

5.  Although  none  of  the  books  consulted  on  the 
preachers  of  the  nineteenth  century  reckons  Dr.  Andrew 
Martin  Fairbairn  (1838-1912)^  among  them,  the  writer 
as  one  of  his  students  cannot  withhold  his  tribute  to  his 
master.  The  sermons  were  often  far  too  long,  learned, 
philosophical  and  theological  for  popularity ;  and  the 
preacher  inclined  to  make  his  boast  of  what  to  most 
persons  would  appear  his  defect ;  he  overtaxed  the 
attention,  because  he  overrated  the  intelligence  of  most  of 
his  hearers.  His  delight  in  description  and  narration,  and 
his  warm  human  sympathy  did  something  to  relieve  the 
tension,  and  to  secure  in  some  measure  a  personal  re- 
sponsiveness, if  not  mental  receptivity,  in  many  of  his 
hearers.  He  had  no  natural  advantages  as  an  orator,  and 
his  mannerisms  sometimes  distracted  the  attention ;  but, 
when  he  was  at  his  best,  for  those  who  could  appreciate 
him,  his  preaching  was  great,  profoundly  impressive  in  its 
range  of  knowledge,  sweep  of  thought,  keenness  of  vision, 
passion  of  conviction,  and  power  of  personality.  Had  he 
laid  less  stress  on  intellect  in  religion  and  so  in  preaching, 

^  See  The  Life  of  Andrew  Martin  Fairbairn,  by  W.  B.  Selbie,  London, 
1914. 


268  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

and  had  he  allowed  as  free  and  full  exercise  in  his  sermons 
to  his  great  heart  revealed  to  those  who  knew  him  as  to 
his  great  mind,  he  would  have  been  more  effective  as  a 
preacher.  The  writer  heard  him  on  the  same  day  preach 
two  sermons,  which  presented  a  striking  contrast.  In  the 
morning  he  preached  from  his  Christian  heart  on  the 
Christian  Motive  :  "  The  Love  of  Christ  constraineth  us."  ^ 
In  the  evening  he  delivered  a  lecture  in  answer  to  the 
question,  "  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ? "  ^  The  first  moved 
his  hearers  to  the  depths  of  their  inner  life ;  the  second 
only  bewildered  most  of  them.  One  is  safe  in  conjecturing 
that  his  own  judgment  of  the  respective  value  of  the  two 
utterances  would  be  the  reverse  of  that  of  his  hearers. 
The  limitation  of  Dr.  Dale's  influence  by  the  stateliness  of 
his  style  has  been  mentioned ;  and  yet  Dr.  Dale  was  more 
experimental  and  practical,  less  historical  and  speculative 
than  was  Dr.  Fairbairn.  Both  were  great  men,  and  the 
writer  who  knew  both  well  fully  appreciates  their  great- 
ness ;  more  effective  as  preachers  they  would  have  been 
had  they  known  better  how  to  stoop  to  conquer. 

6.  All  the  preachers  mentioned  were  concerned  about 
repairing  the  breach  between  the  Christian  Gospel  and  the 
thought  of  the  age.  Just  as,  if  not  more  serious  is  the 
breach  between  the  Christian  Church  and  the  toiling 
masses.  Two  men  may  be  mentioned  who  sought  to  reach 
the  shepherdless  multitude,  and  to  bring  it  into  the  fold  of 
Christ.  The  first  of  these  was  Hugh  Price  Hughes  (1847- 
1902).'  He  cannot  be  reckoned  among  the  great  preachers, 
but  he  claims  a  place  here  as  representative  of  the 
necessary,  and  too  long  delayed,  endeavour  to  get  the 
common  people  to  hear  the  Gospel  gladly,  and  to  commend 
the  Gospel  not  in  word  only,  but  also  in  deed,  by  manifold 
ministry  to  their  needs  of  body  as  well  as  of  soul.  He 
was  a  strong  and  bold  champion  of  the  application  of 
Christian  principles  to  public  life,  to  the  moral  issues  of 
modern  society.  The  writer  heard  him  preach  twice  in 
Oxford,  once  revealing  his  power,  and  again  showing  his 

»  2  Co  5'*.  2  Mt  22".  8  DHP  ii.  pp.  568-569. 


THE   REPAIRERS   OF   THE   BREACH  269 

limitation.  A  straight  talk  on  personal  decision,  based  on 
the  words,  "  Sir,  we  would  see  Jesus,"  ^  moved  his  audi- 
ence of  students  who  had  no  love  of  academic  discourses, 
too  reminiscent  of  their  work  in  classrooms.  A  more 
ambitious  efifort  to  deal  with  the  Natural  Agnosticism  of  the 
Human  Heart  ^  failed  of  any  effect.  It  is  the  former  kind 
of  preaching  that  the  multitude  needs ;  and  that  even  the 
cultured,  unless  spoiled  by  pride  of  culture,  also  delight  in. 
His  strength  lay  in  the  speech  that  moves  from  heart  to 
heart. 

7.  The  second  of  these  leaders  of  the  Church  back  to 
the  people  was  Charles  Silvester  Home  (1865-1914). 
(1)  As  one  of  his  fellow-students  at  Glasgow,  and  then 
Oxford  University,  the  writer  can  testify  that  his  powers 
as  a  speaker  were  early  acknowledged.  In  spite  of  his 
tendency,  when  excited,  to  overstrain  his  voice,  there  was 
no  speaker  who  could  move  an  audience  of  Free  Church- 
men to  such  an  enthusiasm  or  indignation  as  he  could. 
Although  he  excelled  on  the  platform,  yet  in  the  pulpit 
also  his  influence  was  great.  He  left  a  West-end  congrega- 
tion to  lead  a  new  movement  to  recapture  the  masses  for 
Christ  at  Whitefield's  Central  Mission.  Many  of  his  friends 
regretted  that,  impelled  by  his  high  sense  of  public  duty, 
he  added  to  his  manifold  exacting  labours  the  burden  of 
representing  a  constituency  in  Parliament.  Whether,  if  he 
had  spared  himself,  his  life  would  have  been  prolonged,  who 
can  tell  ?  In  the  midst  of  his  work  in  a  moment  death 
took  him ;  just  after  he  had  finished  the  delivery  of  the 
Yale  Lectures  on  Preaching. 

(2)  As  a  personal  friend  from  student  days  the  writer 
ventures  to  bring  to  a  conclusion  the  history  of  preaching 
in  this  volume  by  a  brief  summary  of  Home's  last  lecture, 
entitled  "  The  Eomance  of  Modem  Preaching."  ^  He  seeks 
to  answer  the  question  what  gives  preaching  "  a  perennial 
fascination  and  glory."    He  offers  four  reasons,    (a)  "  Preach- 

»  Jn  \T\ 

"  The  text,  if  memory  does  not  deceive,  was  Ps  14'. 

*  The  Romance  of  Modern  Preaching,  pp.  255-292. 


270  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

ing  can  never  lose  its  place  so  lo7ig  as  the  mystery  and  wonder 
of  the  human  spirit  remains.  For  we  are  dealing  with  that 
which  is  the  source  of  all  the  amazing  interest  of  life."  .  .  . 
"  We  preachers  live  always  in  the  conscious  presence  of 
the  supreme  mysteries."  (6)  "  Amid  all  changes  of  thought 
and  phrase  the  wonder  of  conversion  remains."  .  .  . 
"  There  is  not  a  moment  of  any  day,  in  any  year,  when  we 
may  not  rise  with  Christ  into  newness  of  life  and  walk  in 
His  ways  with  transfigured  spirits.  All  this  goes  to  make 
up  the  charm,  the  fascination,  the  rapture,  the  romance  of 
the  ministry."  (c)  "  We  are  manifestly  on  the  eve  of 
new  application  of  Christ's  teaching,  which  will  revive  the 
interest  of  the  people  in  Christianity  to  a  surprising 
degree.  ,  .  .  The  watchword  of  our  new  century  is  Justice. 
It  will  create  as  splendid  an  army  of  prophets ;  and  it  may 
very  well  be  that,  before  the  victory  is  won,  men  and 
women  will  have  to  buy  the  new  inheritance  at  a  great 
price.  But  buy  it  they  will ;  for  the  master  passion  in  the 
breast  of  the  noblest  of  our  young  men  is  that  the  will  of 
the  Father  shall  be  done  *  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven.' " 
(d)  "  Over  this  world  of  military  camps,  bristling  frontiers 
and  armoured  fleets,  there  is  being  heard  to-day  with  new 
insistence  the  ever-romantic  strains  of  the  angels'  song  of 
Peace  and  Goodwill." 

8.  Does  this  last  statement  ring  in  our  ear  as  a  cruel 
mockery  ?  Home  did  not  live  to  witness  the  outbreak  of 
war.*  Yet  he  was  no  false  prophet ;  the  general  permanent 
purpose  of  the  nations,  in  so  far  as  they  are  Christian,  is 
peace,  and  not  war.  If  the  Churches  are  true  and  brave, 
on  the  bloody  battlefields  of  Europe  will  be  sealed  the 
doom  of  its  armed  camps.  One  cannot  doubt  that  had  he 
lived  he  would  not  have  abated  heart  or  hope,  but  would 
have  continued  the  prophet  of  the  better  day,  the  im- 
passioned advocate  of  the  League  of  Nations.  More  than 
ever  the  preachers  of  to-day  must  labour  as  the  repairers 

*  Two  volumes  of  the  Yale  Lectures  have  appeared  which  take  account  of 
the  war  in  its  influence  on  preaching.  Coffin's  In  a  Day  of  Social  Mebuild- 
ing,  and  Kelman's  The  War  and  Preaching. 


THE  REPAIRERS  OF  THE  BREACH  271 

of  the  breach  in  the  world  which,  professing  Christianity, 
has  yet  in  mutual  slaughter  been  disowning  the  sovereignty 
''  of  the  Prince  of  Peace.  Even  if,  as  the  writer  himself 
believes,  war  was  forced  on  some  of  the  nations  in  defence 
of  the  precious  heritage  of  nationality,  and  to  prevent  the 
triumph  of  might  over  right,  so  that  all  the  peoples  at  war 
are  not  involved  in  blood-guiltiness,  yet  inevitably  much  of 
the  good  gained  during  the  last  century,  which  to  him,  who, 
though  dead,  speaks  to  us  in  this  hopeful  forecast  of  the 
future,  seemed  an  assured  possession,  must  be  recovered  by 
suffering  and  toil.  In  that  resurrection  of  the  Christian 
Churches  from  among  dead  aims,  hopes  and  achievements, 
the  Christian  preacher  ^  must  in  this  age,  as  in  former  ages, 
bear  his  witness  to  the  inexhaustible  power  and  final 
triumph  of  the  Eisen  Lord  ;  must  continue  calling  to  the 
world  around,  "  Awake,  thou  that  sleepest,  and  arise  from 
the  dead,  and  Christ  shall  shine  upon  thee,"  ^  and  send  forth 
to  the  Churches  themselves  the  summons :  "  Arise,  shine  ; 
for  thy  light  is  come,  and  the  glory  of  the  Lord  is  risen 
upon  thee."* 

1  The  writer  has  decided  not  to  mention  any  preachers  still  Uving,  owing 
to  the  greater  difl5culty  of  making  a  choice.  An  intelligent  appreciation  of 
a  number  of  these  may  be  found  in  the  book  entitled  Vmces  of  To-day, 

»  Eph  5".  •  Is  60^. 


PART  II. 

THE     CREDENTIALS,    QUALIFICA 
TIONS    AND    FUNCTIONS    OF    THE 
PREACHER. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

The  history  of  preaching,  with  which  the  First  Part  has 
dealt,  is  the  necessary  presupposition  of  any  discussion 
of  the  credentials,  qualifications  and  functions  of  the 
preacher  to-day.  Since  he  stands  in  a  historical  succes- 
sion, he  will  recognise  the  responsibility  of  his  trust,  and 
the  difficulty  of  his  task,  only  as  he  has  a  distinct  con- 
sciousness of  this  succession,  and  takes  up  into  his  ideal  of 
his  vocation  all  the  elements  of  permanent  significance  and 
value  in  the  previous  history.  But  on  the  other  hand 
"  God  fulfils  Himself  in  many  ways  lest  one  good  custom 
should  corrupt  the  world,"  and  accordingly  the  conception 
of  the  preacher's  calling  which  the  past  yields  cannot 
simply  be  transfeiTed  to  the  present ;  but  in  his  work  he 
must  recognise  the  necessity  of  adaptation  to  the  existing 
conditions,  as  in  this  sphere,  no  less  than  in  others  of 
human  activity,  the  principle  of  evolution  is  applicable. 
What  must  as  far  as  possible  be  combined  are  loyalty  to 
the  past  and  devotion  to  the  present ;  and  with  that  alli- 
ance there  will  surely  go  also  guidance  for  the  future.  As 
far  as  possible,  in  order  to  emphasise  the  virtue  of  con- 
tinuity, the  old  terms  descriptive  of  the  position  and  obli- 
gations of  the  preacher  will  be  used,  with  such  modification 
of  meaning,  however,  as  changed  times  may  demand. 

872 


CHAPTER   I. 

THE  PREACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND 
SCRIBE. 

As  the  preacher  claims  to  be  offering  men  truth  valid 
for  their  reason  and  authoritative  for  their  conscience,  he 
must  be  able  to  offer  his  credentials,  he  must  show  that 
he  has  the  competence,  and  so  the  authority,  to  speak  to 
men  in  the  name  of  God.  As  it  is  the  Gospel  of  Jesus 
Christ  which  he  is  called  to  preach,  he  must  first  of  all  be 
able  to  show  that  Christ  Himself  has  entrusted  His  Gospel 
to  him,  and  that  Christ's  Church  has  confirmed  his  claim ; 
he  must  be  an  apostle.  While  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ 
was  given  once  for  all,  yet  in  the  interpretation  and  appli- 
cation of  that  Gospel,  the  Christian  preacher  needs  the 
enlightening  and  quickening  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  that  he 
may  declare  the  permanent  and  universal  revelation  of  God 
as  personally  revealed  to  himself ;  he  must  be  a  prophet. 
This  revelation  of  God  has  been  preserved  in  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  and  the  personal  illumination  of  the  preacher 
cannot  be  a  substitute  for,  but  is  always  in  dependence  on 
his  study  of  the  Holy  Scriptures;  he  must  be  a  scribe. 
These  three  relations,  apostle,  'prophet,  scribe,  indicate  the 
channel  through  which  comes  to  him  the  message  for 
which  he  can  claim  the  validity  and  the  authority  of 
truth. 

I. 

1.  In  dealing  with  the  Christian  preacher  the  starting- 
point  must  be  the  relation  of  Jesus  to  the  Twelve,  whom 
He  chose,  called,  taught  and  trained,  and  then  sent  forth  as 
the  witnesses  of  His  Gospel,  and  the  workers  for  His  king- 
dom.    We  are  not  concerned  here  with  any  ecclesiastical 


274  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

figments  of  apostolic  succession ;  but  are  simply  trying  to 
learn  from  what  the  apostles  were  what  the  Christian 
preacher  should  be.  As  was  pointed  out  in  a  previous 
chapter,^  a  necessary  qualification  of  apostleship  was  per- 
sonal knowledge  of  Jesus,  especially  witness  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion. The  personal  experience  of  Christ  as  Saviour  and 
Lord  is  also  the  primary  qualification  of  the  Christian 
preacher.  While  we  must  not  insist  on  any  one  type  of 
Christian  development  as  essential,  yet  we  may  lay  down 
the  broad  general  principle  that  the  less  the  religious  life 
of  the  Christian  preacher  is  second-hand,  dependent  on  the 
theological  traditions  and  pious  conventions  of  the  religious 
community  to  which  he  belongs,  and  the  more  it  is  first- 
hand, due  to  his  individual  consciousness  of  the  presence 
and  power  of  the  living  Christ  in  his  own  soul,  the  fitter 
will  he  be  to  bear  testimony  to  what  Christ  is  and  what 
Christ  can  do.  If  his  Christian  life  has  been  a  gradual 
development,  he  runs  the  risk  of  not  recognising  adequately 
in  the  natural  growth  the  supernatural  grace  of  Christ 
which  has  made,  and  is  making  him  what  he  is.  The 
necessity,  sufficiency  and  efficiency  of  the  grace  of  Christ 
may  not  be  adequately  appreciated  by  him.  If,  on  the 
other  hand,  his  Christian  life  has  had  a  certain  and  distinct 
beginning  in  a  conscious  and  voluntary  conversion,  his  peril 
is  that  he  may  so  emphasise  the  supernatural  act  of  Christ 
in  saving  as  to  ignore  the  manifold  natural  channels  of 
this  gracious  activity.  Whatever  be  the  type  of  his 
Christian  experience,  the  preacher  will  be  disqualified  for 
his  work  by  one-sidedness,  unless  he  learns  to  live  his 
religious  life  vicariously,  to  live  in  the  life  of  others  whose 
experience  is  unlike  his  own.  Sympathy  and  imagination, 
however,  should  enable  a  man  to  put  himself  in  the  varied 
and  varying  positions  in  which,  owing  to  differences  of 
education,  temperament  and  circumstances,  men  living  the 
same  life  in  Christ  do  find  themselves.  Preaching  is  to 
be  the  voice,  not  of  the  preacher's  individuality,  with 
its  narrowing  limitations,  but  of  the  universal  Christian 
»  Pp.  48-49. 


PREACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND  SCRIBE   275 

experience  which  testifies  to  the  manifoldness  of  the  truth 
and  grace  of  Christ.  Without  desiring  to  qualify  this 
statement,  the  writer  cannot  but  add  that  to  him,  at  least, 
it  seems  that  preaching  can  be  truly  apostolic  only  when 
the  note  of  certainty  that  Christ  is  risen  is  distinctly  heard. 
Jesus  as  teacher  and  example  may  be  the  theme  of  Christian 
preaching ;  but  that  preaching  will  surely  lack  the  "  holy 
enthusiasm  "  of  the  preaching  of  the  apostles  which  does 
not  witness  from  personal  experience  that  the  Lord  is 
risen  indeed.^ 

2.  This  personal  experience  must,  however,  include  the 
consciousness  of  personal  vocation  by  Christ  for  the  work 
of  preaching.  (1)  Each  of  the  Twelve  was  called;  and  so 
must  the  preacher  know  himself  called.  While  to  all 
Christians  according  to  the  gift  of  the  Spirit  some  work  in 
the  Christian  Church  is  appointed,  this  work,  because  so 
much  more  prominent,  responsible  and  representative,  does 
demand  a  certainty  of  vocation.  Some  men  can  testify  to 
having  received  as  distinct  a  call  from  Christ  to  the  work 
of  the  ministry  as  did  any  of  the  Twelve.  It  may  be  even 
that  contrary  to  their  previous  education,  their  personal 
inclination,  and  their  determining  circumstances,  necessity 
was  laid  upon  them,  while  recognising  their  unfitness,  un- 
readiness, and  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  obedience,  so 
that  they  dared  not  be  "  disobedient  to  the  heavenly  vision." 
The  possibility  of  mistake  may  be  admitted.  There  are 
disqualifications  of  capacity,  character  and  even  circum- 
stances, which  only  ignorant  conceit  could  disregard  and 
vain  ambition  could  defy;  but  nevertheless  it  would  be 
rash  for  another  to  challenge  the  reality  of  the  call  where 
it  comes  with  such  authority  and  urgency.  All  that  in 
the  one  case  seemed  to  offer  a  reason  against  the  choice 
of  this  calling,  may  in  the  other  combine  to  compel  the 
question,  whether  the  natural  inclinations  are  not  to  be 
taken  as  God's  supernatural  guidance.  If  a  man  recog- 
nises   that   the   fields   ripe    for    the    harvest  are  needing 

^  Dr.  Stalker  devotes  four  of  the  nine  lectures  of  his  book  on  The  Freueher 
and  his  Models,  to  St.  Paul,  as  the  representative  of  apostolic  preaching. 


276  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

labourers,  and  that  God  in  His  providence  has  made  it 
possible  for  him  to  render  such  service,  he  may  decide  that 
it  is  his  duty  so  to  serve,  even  if  there  be  no  distinct 
experience  of  a  call.  In  either  case  it  is  not  the  form  of 
the  experience  which  matters,  but  the  reality  of  the  divine 
guidance  which  is  experienced. 

(2)  As  the  preacher  in  the  Christian  Church  is  the 
representative  of  the  community,  speaks  for  it  as  well  as 
to  it,  to  his  own  sense  of  his  calling  there  must  come  the 
confirmation  of  the  call  of  the  Church.  Here  too  there  is 
possibility  of  mistake  ;  the  Church  may  appoint  whom  God 
has  not  set  apart,  and  may  refuse  its  acknowledgment  to 
one  who  has  the  divine  warrant.  And  yet  the  man's  sense 
y  of  being  called,  and  the  appointment  of  the  man  who  has 
heard  the  call  by  the  Church,  are  a  mutual  safeguard,  and 
ordinarily  the  Church  should  satisfy  itself  that  he  who 
seeks  its  ordination  can  claim  the  vocation  by  God,  and 
the  man  who  thinks  himself  called,  but  fails  to  win  the 
Church's  recognition,  should  accept  the  judgment  of  the 
community  in  correction  of  his  own  estimate  of  himself. 
The  qualifications  which  will  be  indicated  in  the  course  of 
these  chapters  are  such  as  demand  a  special  education  of 
the  preacher,  and  it  is  for  the  good  of  the  Churches  that 
the  possibility  of  such  an  education  should  be  placed  within 
the  reach  of  all  who  have  felt  the  call,  and  in  whom  the 
Church  sees  the  promise  of  fitness  for  the  calling,  without 
regard  to  financial  resources  or  social  rank.  The  training 
for  the  ministry  should  be  offered  freely  to  the  poor  youth, 
if  worthy  and  fit. 

3.  It  is  the  personal  experience  and  the  personal  voca- 
tion, confirmed  by  the  Church,  which  give  to  the  Christian 
preacher  his  authority.  There  can  be  no  doubt  whatever 
that,  in  the  early  Church,  the  apostles  claimed  an  authority 
which  was  conceded  to  them.  Without  any  hierarchical 
pretensions  or  official  arrogance,  the  Christian  preacher  also 
may  claim  authority,  but  an  authority  which  imposes  an 
obligation.  The  apostles  had  authority  as  the  companions 
of  Jesus  and  the  witnesses  of  His  Eesurrection ;  and  so  the 


PREACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND  SCRIBE   277 

Christian  preacher  has  authority  only  as  he  continues  the 
same  function  in  the  Church.  (1)  It  is  the  truth  and 
grace  of  Christ  which  he  must  apprehend  for  himself  and 
offer  to  others.  It  is  Christ,  and  the  Christ  of  the  evan- 
gelical history,  apostolic  testimony,  and  Church's  continuous 
experience,  and  not  himself,  his  own  views  and  aims,  that 
he  must  preach.  Whatever  be  his  own  immediate  contact 
with  Christ  in  personal  experience,  yet  historically  he  is 
linked  to  Christ  by  the  Christian  community,  and  it  is  his 
relation  as  its  representative  which  gives  him  his  authority, 
and  this  relation  demands  on  his  part,  if  his  authority  is 
not  to  be  a  usurpation,  fidelity  to  its  historic  confession  of 
Christ  as  Saviour  and  Lord.  This  does  not  mean  that  he 
is  to  go  on  repeating  stereotyped  phrases,  or  even  in  his 
own  mind  to  preserve  superseded  phases  of  Christian  belief, 
but  it  does  mean  that  in  his  preaching  he  does  declare  the 
historic  facts,  the  religious  truths,  and  the  moral  duties 
which,  undefined  and  undefinable  in  any  creed,  would 
command  the  acceptance  of  all  Christians,  and  which  form, 
nevertheless,  the  common  treasure  which  believers  and 
saints  know  themselves  to  possess. 

(2)  Most  Christian  denominations  seek  to  secure  the 
continuity  of  faith  by  means  of  subscription  to  a  creed,  but 
even  if  such  subscription  were  desirable,  as  in  the  writer's 
opinion  it  is  not,  it  is  useless  as  a  safeguard  without  the 
personal  loyalty  to  the  doctrine  it  includes  on  the  part  of 
those  who  subscribe  it.  No  creed  has  yet  been  formed  the 
terms  of  which  were  so  unambiguous  as  to  leave  no  room 
for  variety  of  interpretation,  and  no  subscription  was  ever 
so  rigid  as  not  to  allow  for  mental  reservations.  Given 
the  loyalty,  the  creed  subscription  is  unnecessary ;  failing 
the  loyalty,  it  is  futile.  The  Christian  community  is  a 
living  body,  and  the  continuity  of  its  life  cannot  be  main- 
tained by  such  mechanical  devices  as  creed  subscription. 
The  recognition  of  this  fact  makes  not  less,  but  more 
necessary  the  insistence  on  the  duty  of  the  Christian 
preacher  to  recognise  fully  his  responsibility  in  his  preach- 
ing to  maintain  with  all  necessary  adaptation  in  the  forms 


278  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

of  presentation,  the  faith  which  has  linked  the  Christian 
generations  to  one  another.  Only  as  he  recognises  that  he 
is  a  man  under  the  authority  of  the  truth  can  he  declare 
the  truth  with  authority. 

4.  It  was  the  apostolic  function  to  link  historically 
the  Christian  Church  to  the  historical  Jesus,  and  so  it  is 
the  function  of  the  Christian  preacher  as  an  apostle  to 
maintain  the  historical  continuity  of  the  Church.  It  is 
surely  not  in  rites,  customs,  creeds  and  codes  that  the 
Christian  life  maintains  its  identity  through  the  changing 
centuries,  for  that  identity  cannot  be  a  uniformity  such  as 
these  external  forms  alone  can  maintain,  but  must  be 
realised  in  a  development,  to  which  change  as  well  as 
sameness  belongs.  It  is  for  the  Christian  preacher  to 
receive  the  Christian  inheritance  of  the  past,  and  to  adapt 
it  in  such  wise  to  the  need  of  his  own  age  that  it  will  be 
effective  for  all  religious  and  moral  ends,  and  will  pass  from 
him  to  another  generation  as  a  greatly  enriched  bequest. 
So  conceived,  the  pulpit  becomes  the  channel  of  the  growing 
life  of  the  Christian  Church  from  generation  to  generation ; 
it  is  not  an  individual  possession  of  the  preacher,  however 
great  and  many  his  gifts  may  be,  but  a  common  trust,  and 
the  Church's  fidelity  to  its  purpose  in  the  world  will  depend 
on  the  preacher's  loyalty  as  its  representative.  That  there 
is  need  of,  and  room  for,  originality  in  the  pulpit,  will  be 
shown  in  the  subsequent  discussion ;  but  what  needs  to  be 
asserted  in  view  of  many  tendencies  towards  an  excessive 
subjectivity  is  that  the  Christ  of  the  faith  of  the  Church 
is  a  constant  objective  reality,  and  that  the  preacher  is 
Christian  only  as  he  recognises  and  respects  the  distinctive- 
ness of  the  faith  he  preaches  as  historical.^ 


II. 

1.  But  if  the  apostolic  function  suggests  one  aspect  of 
the  Christian  preacher's  work,  the  prophetic  offers  us  the 

^  This  subject  has  been  fully  treated  by  Dr.  Forsyth  in  his  book,  Positive 
PreMcking  and  the  Modern  Mind.     See  pp.  71-72. 


PEEACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND  SCRIBE   279 

complementary  aspect.  The  Christian  preacher  does  not 
stand  only  in  a  historical  succession  ;  he  has  also  a  spiritual 
equipment.  The  Spirit  who  fitted  the  prophets  for  their 
calling  has  made  the  Christian  Church  His  permanent 
organ,  and  all  who  share  the  common  life  of  the  Church 
are  subjects  of  the  Spirit's  presence  and  power.  He  who 
possessed  the  Spirit  without  measure  has  also  endowed  His 
body  with  a  like  possession.^  The  Montanist  movement 
was  an  attempt  to  force  a  recovery  of  the  external  aspects 
of  the  Spirit's  operation  in  the  Apostolic  Church,  the 
abnormal  psychical  conditions  which  in  some  persons 
accompanied  the  "  holy  enthusiasm "  kindled  by  the 
certainty  of  the  Kisen  Living  Lord ;  but  in  suppressing 
Montanism,  the  Church  tended  to  substitute  mechanics  for 
dynamics,  organisation  for  inspiration.  Even  to-day  it  is 
necessary  to  insist  that  a  genuinely  and  intensely  Christian 
life  will  be  an  inspired  life,  not  sporadic  exaltations,  but  a 
constant  religious  and  moral  transformation  of  the  spirit  of 
man  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  In  His  Spirit  the  Living  Christ 
gives  Himself  to  be  the  inner  life  of  believers.  To  be  His 
is  to  possess  the  Spirit.  There  is  an  enlightening  of  the 
mind,  a  quickening  of  the  heart,  a  cleansing  of  the 
conscience  and  a  renewal  of  the  will  in  the  Christian, 
which  is  not  merely  natural  human  development,  but  is 
also  a  supernatural  divine  action. 

2.  While  this  claim  of  inspiration  may  and  ought  to 
be  made  for  all  Christians,  yet  there  is  diversity  of  the 
Spirit's  operations,  and  some  are  specially  endowed  for 
distinctive  service.  Although  the  historic  connection  with 
Jesus  was  a  necessary  condition  of  apostleship,  yet  the 
apostles  also  possessed  a  distinctive  gift  of  the  Spirit  to 
fit  them  for  their  leadership  of  the  Church.^  Next  to  the 
apostles  ranked  the  prophets,  of  whose  functions  a  previous 
chapter  ^  also  gave  some  account.  The  difference  between 
the  apostolic    and   the  prophetic  aspect  of    the  Christian 

^  John  3**  AV.  "  God  giveth  not  the  Spirit  by  measure  unto  him."    RV. 
"He  giveth  not  the  Spirit  by  measure." 

n  Co  1228.  'Pp.  49-50. 


280  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

ministry  may  be  thus  briefly  stated.  The  apostle  declares 
the  faith  which  has  once  for  all  been  delivered  as  the 
sacred  deposit  of  the  Christian  community;  the  prophet 
reads  the  signs  of  the  times,  and  applies  the  truth  as  it 
is  in  Jesus  to  the  new  needs.  There  is  still  a  purpose 
of  God  being  fulfilled  in  human  history ;  and  that  men 
may  co-operate  with  that  purpose  it  is  necessary  that  they 
should  understand  it.  It  is  to  be  feared  that  while  on  the  one 
hand  rash  men  have  far  too  confidently  declared  the  decrees 
and  the  designs  of  the  divine  providence ;  yet  on  the  other 
hand  the  Christian  preacher  has  often  shrunk  from  his  pro- 
phetic task  when  God  was  calling  him  to  it.  Contemporary 
human  events  have  some  eternal  divine  meaning ;  and  this 
both  for  guidance  and  encouragement  the  Christian  Church 
should  seek  to  know,  and  the  preacher  or  prophet  is  especi- 
ally charged  with  the  function  of  such  interpretation. 

3.  It  is  a  task  full  of  peril.  As  in  Israel  so  in  the 
Christian  Church  there  may  be  false  as  well  as  true 
prophecy.*  National  prejudices,  ecclesiastical  preferences, 
class  interests  may  so  blind  the  eyes  of  the  preacher  that 
he  does  not  see  the  history  of  his  own  time  as  God  would 
have  it  understood.  During  recent  years  Christian 
preachers  in  Germany  were  defending  the  war  as  necessary 
and  legitimate  self-defence,  on  which  the  blessing  of  God 
could  be  invoked.  Little  more  than  a  decade  ago  Christian 
preachers  in  Britain  were  as  zealously  defending  the  Boer 
War.  Now  the  invasion  of  a  small  country  like  Belgium 
is  a  crime  against  humanity  for  those  who  regarded  the 
suppression  of  the  Boer  nation  as  a  debt  to  civilisation  and 
even  Christianity.  While  the  man  who  always  finds  his 
own  country  wrong  is  probably  just  as  mistaken  as  the  man 
who  always  finds  it  right ;  yet  the  prophet  must  be  specially 
on  his  guard  against  confusing  human  prejudices  and  divine 
principles,  his  own  inclinations  and  God's  inspiration  of 
him.  Great  as  is  the  difficulty  of  an  objective  judgment 
of  what  concerns  us  personally  very  closely,  yet  for   the 

*  Dr.  stalker  in  the  book  already  referred  to  deals  in  the  fifth  lecture  with 
the  Preacher  as  a  false  prophet. 


PREACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND  SCRIBE   281 

discharge  of  his  duty  the  preacher  must  learn  as  in  this, 
80  in  all  respects  to  rise  above  and  go  beyond  his  own 
limitations  of  time  and  place,  and  so  to  live  in  the  per- 
manent and  universal  life  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  that  God 
will  find  in  his  moral  insight  and  spiritual  discernment  an 
unimpeded  channel  for  the  communication  of  His  mind 
and  will  to  his  age  and  people. 

4.  A  very  important  distinction  between  ancient  and 
modern  prophecy  must  be  asserted.  The  prophet  of  old 
was  the  agent  of  a  preparatory  and  progressive  revelation, 
but  the  prophet  to-day  is  the  agent  of  a  confirmatory  and 
expository  revelation.  When  Jesus  made  the  promise  of 
the  Paraclete  to  His  disciples.  He  so  defined  the  functions 
of  the  Spirit  of  truth  as  to  subordinate  the  revelation  by 
the  Spirit  to  the  revelation  in  the  Son.  "  Howbeit  when 
He,  the  Spirit  of  truth,  is  come.  He  will  guide  you  into  all 
truth :  for  He  shall  not  speak  of  Himself ;  but  whatsoever 
He  shall  hear,  that  shall  He  speak.  .  .  .  He  shall  glorify 
Me :  for  He  shall  receive  of  Mine,  and  shall  shew  it  unto 
you."  ^  As  He  the  Son  was  wholly  dependent  on  the 
Father,  so  would  the  Spirit  be  dependent  on  the  revelation 
that  He  the  Son  had  already  given  of  the  Father,  The 
religion  of  the  Spirit  is  sometimes  so  represented  as  to  be 
a  setting  aside  of  Christ  as  the  Saviour  and  Lord.  If  a 
man  is  convinced  that  the  Lord  hath  spoken  to  Him 
something  above  and  beyond  what  has  akeady  been 
spoken  in  the  Son,  he  cannot  be  hindered  in  declaring 
the  oracle  which  has  been  committed  to  him ;  but  it  can 
be  said  with  an  impartial  historical  judgment  that  nothing 
of  any  value  has  been  added  by  any  of  these  new  prophets 
to  the  deposit  of  moral  and  religious  truth  already  possessed 
by  the  Church  in  the  revelation  of  God  in  Christ.  The 
Christian  prophet  claims  only  the  humbler  service  of 
confii'ming  and  interpreting  under  the  Spirit's  influence 
the  revelation  already  received.^ 

"  The  jireaclier's  inspiration  has  been  dealt  with  by  Dr.  Horton  in  his 
book,  Verbum  Dei. 


282  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

III. 

1.  The  revelation  which  culminated  in  Christ,  and  the 
revelation  which  is  complete  in  Christ,  are  both  recorded 
in  the  Holy  Scriptures.  This  record  includes  not  only  the 
narrative  of  the  historical  events  in  which  God's  purpose 
was  fulfilled,  but  also  the  testimony  to,  and  the  interpreta- 
tion of,  this  history  in  the  religious  life  and  thought  of  the 
subordinate  agents  of  revelation,  prophets  and  apostles. 
The  Christian  preacher  both  as  apostle  and  as  prophet  has 
a  dependent  relation  to  the  Holy  Scriptures ;  and  we  may, 
retaining  as  far  as  we  can  the  old  terms,  describe  him  as 
a  scribe.  He  is  the  student  and  exponent  of  the  Bible, 
because,  alike  in  his  apprehension  of  Christ  and  his  inter- 
pretation of  the  mind  and  will  of  God,  he  cannot  know  and 
understand  the  revelation  of  God  apart  from  the  Holy 
Scriptures.  This  dependence  is  confessed,  though  often  it 
is  to  be  feared  unconsciously  and  involuntarily,  when  the 
text  of  a  sermon  is  given  out.  Thus  the  preacher  acknow- 
ledges that  what  he  is  about  to  say  has  its  source  and  its 
authority  in  what  God  has  already  said  in  Christ,  or 
by  prophets  and  apostles.  The  use  of  a  text,  then,  is 
not  an  arbitrary  convention  which  may  be  set  aside 
without  making  any  difference  to  the  preacher  and  the 
character  of  the  preaching.  There  may  be  rare  occasions, 
and  peculiar  subjects,  when  the  preacher  may  feel  war- 
ranted in  dispensing  with  a  text ;  and  this  is  the  more 
honest  course  than  to  attach  a  sermon  to  a  text  by  a  tour 
de  force  of  exegesis.  But  a  preacher  would  have  good 
ground  for  suspecting  the  adequacy  of  his  knowledge  of 
the  Bible,  or  the  loyalty  of  his  preaching  to  Christian 
truth,  who  found  it  necessary  frequently  to  depart  from 
not  only  a  time-honoured  custom,  but  an  authoritative 
principle  rooted  in  the  very  character  of  Christian  preach- 
ing as  dependent  on  divine  revelation.  The  contents  of 
the  Scriptures  are  so  varied,  and  the  wisdom,  righteousness 
and  grace  therein  recorded  so  manifold  with  a  divine 
abundance,    that    it    could    be    but    very    seldom    that   a 


PREACHER  AS   APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND   SCRIBE      283 

preacher  who  was  also  an  instructed  scribe  could  not  find 
in  that  treasure-house  a  warrant  both  for  things  new  as 
well  as  old  which  he  might  desire  to  bring  forth.^  Ac- 
cordingly it  may  be  urged  as  strongly  as  possible  that  the 
preacher  who  does  not  find  in  the  Holy  Scriptures  not 
only  his  themes,  but  even  the  most  profitable  treatment 
of  them,  is  likely  very  soon  to  exhaust  his  stock  of  subjects, 
and  to  get  theadbare  in  his  treatment  of  them ;  while,  on 
the  contrary,  he  who  knows  and  understands  the  literature 
of  the  divine  revelation  and  of  the  human  redemption,  has 
an  inexhaustible  source  to  which  he  can  constantly  return 
with  confidence  that  he  will  not  be  sent  empty  away,  but 
that  he  will  find  the  record  as  abundant  as  the  truth  and 
grace  of  the  Infinite  God  can  make  it.  It  has  pleased 
God  that  as  in  His  Christ,  so  in  His  Scriptures  His  fulness 
should  dwell — and  of  that  fulness  we  may  keep  on  freely 
receiving  according  to  our  desires  and  capacities. 

2.  The  generally  accepted  results  of  modern  scholarship 
in  regard  to  the  Bible  raise  a  problem  for  the  preacher 
which  cannot  be  ignored  or  escaped.  (1)  It  is,  of  course, 
possible  for  a  man  to  decide  that  he  will  keep  his  eyes 
closed  to  all  new  light  on  this  as  on  other  subjects ;  and, 
if  he  is  ignorant  and  dishonest  enough,  he  may  be  able 
to  go  on  treating  the  Bible  in  the  pulpit  in  the  traditional 
way.  Apart  from  the  injury,  moral  as  well  as  intellectual, 
of  such  an  attitude  to  the  man  himself,  and  the  weakness 
of  faith  which  lies  at  the  root  of  such  cowardice  in 
facing  fact  and  truth,  his  influence  over  his  hearers  who 
read  and  think  will  be  not  to  promote  faith,  but  rather 
to  provoke  doubt  and  unbelief.  The  Christian  ministry 
is  probably  not  aware  to  how  great  an  extent  its  moral 
and  religious  authority  is  being  undermined  by  a  growing 
suspicion  in  the  cultured  class  that  ministers  have  not 
the  courage  either  to  acquaint  themselves  with  any 
new  knowledge  which  might  disturb  their  theological 
assumptions,  or,  having  gained  some  acquaintance,  the 
sincerity   to   betray  it   lest  they  might  disturb  the  tran- 

1  Mt  1352, 


284  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

quillity  of  their  congregations.  It  is  certain  that  a  preacher 
cannot  influence  those  who  are  doubtful  of  his  courage  and 
his  sincerity,  and  that  a  fearless  following  of  the  truth, 
whithersoever  it  may  lead,  alone  will  command  respect. 
It  is  not  merely  the  preacher's  intellectual  adequacy,  but 
even  his  moral  integrity,  which  is  involved  in  the  solution 
of  this  problem. 

(2)  If  a  man  has  both  knowledge  and  courage,  there 
still  remains  a  difficult  question,  which  will  demand  all  his 
Christian  wisdom  to  answer :  how  far  is  he  in  the  pulpit  to 
deal  with  the  results  of  the  literary  and  historical  criticism 
of  the  Bible  ?  He  must  consider  not  only  what  he  means 
to  say,  but  also  what  his  hearers  are  likely  to  understand 
by  what  he  says.  Truth  may  be  so  spoken  as  on  un- 
prepared minds  to  leave  the  injurious  impression  of 
falsehood.  The  denial  of  the  Mosaic  authorship  of  the 
Pentateuch,  or  of  the  unity  of  the  book  of  Isaiah,  to  men- 
tion as  instances  only  two  of  the  most  assured  conclusions 
of  modern  scholarship,  may  appear  to  some  ignorant  saints 
(and  saints  are  often  very  ignorant)  in  a  congregation  a 
challenge  of  the  authority  of  the  Bible  in  morals  and 
religion  as  well.  Some  of  the  very  best  men  and  women 
in  a  congregation  are  most  firmly  bound  by  the  traditional 
views  of  the  Bible ;  and,  even  in  the  interests  of  accurate 
knowledge,  their  convictions,  however  mistaken,  must  not 
be  disregarded.  Courage  must  be  combined  with  con- 
siderateness.  The  "  strong  "  in  faith  in  this  respect  must 
not  despise  the  "  weak " ;  but,  at  the  same  time,  the 
"  weak  "  cannot  ever  continue  to  impose  their  limitations 
on  the  liberty  of  the  "  strong."  ^  But  the  adjustment  of 
these  two  interests  requires  a  judgment  and  tact  which 
only  the  enlightening  of  the  Spirit  can  give.  Are  there 
any  general  principles  which  can  be  laid  down,  while  their 
application  must  always  remain  the  obligation  and  responsi- 
bility of  individual  conscience  ? 

(3)  The  following  considerations  are  offered  with  some 
diffidence,    even    although    there    is    practical    experience 

'  See  Ro  14  for  Paul's  treatment  of  a  similar  problem. 


PREACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND   SCRIBE      285 

behind  them.  In  the  first  place,  it  must  be  maintained 
that  the  pulpit  is  not  the  place  for  instruction  about  the 
Bible,  but  for  declaration  of  the  truth  and  grace  of  God 
conveyed  in  the  Bible.  Special  courses  of  lectures  on 
Sunday  evenings  on  some  of  the  critical  questions  may  be 
in  some  congregations  not  only  tolerable,  but  even  desir- 
able ;  for,  if  the  public  mind  is  engaged  at  any  time  by  any 
theological  problem,  it  may  be  the  duty  of  the  preacher  to 
offer  his  own  contribution  to  the  solution.  As  a  general 
rule,  however,  any  parade  of  learning  in  the  sermon  is 
offensive  in  the  highest  degree,  and  most  of  all  to  those 
who  are  best  able  to  judge  its  value.  In  the  Bible  Class, 
the  minister  may  prepare  the  young  people  of  his  "  cure  of 
souls "  to  accept  the  new  knowledge  without  any  loss  of 
the  old  faith. 

In  the  second  place,  the  exposition  of  a  passage  of 
Scripture  may  require  that  the  results  of  modern  scholar- 
ship should  be  assumed.  For  instance,  the  fifty-third 
chapter  of  Isaiah  cannot  be  made  as  intelligible  and  inter- 
esting as  it  should  be,  unless  the  historical  situation  is  fully 
and  clearly  presented.  The  existence  of  the  great  prophet 
of  the  Exile  may  be  simply  affirmed  without  any  debate 
about  the  unity  of  the  Book.  Or  again,  the  differences  of 
the  Synoptic  and  the  Johannine  presentation  of  the  person 
of  Jesus  may  need  to  be  recognised  in  order  to  leave  the 
true  impression  of  the  life  and  work  of  Jesus ;  and  yet  the 
Synoptic  question,  or  the  problem  of  the  authorship  of  the 
Fourth  Gospel,  need  not  be  discussed  in  detail.  The 
influence  of  changing  historical  conditions  on  Paul's  the- 
ology may  be  noted  without  raising  any  controversy  about 
"  the  husk  "  and  "  the  kernel "  in  his  teaching.  So  far  as 
modern  scholarship  is  an  aid  to  an  understanding,  and  an 
appreciation  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  the  preacher  not  only 
may,  but  ought  to,  use  it  freely  and  boldly  ;  never  in  a 
controversial  spirit,  but  always  with  a  constructive  purpose. 

In  the  third  place,  even  when  a  preacher  is  not  directly 
dealing  with  any  matters  of  scholarship,  his  treatment  of 
his  text   will  show  any  discerning    and   informed   hearer 


286  •     THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

whether  or  not  he  has  the  scholarship,  and  is  using  it.  A 
reverent  and  sympathetic  hearer,  however  well  informed  on 
these  questions,  does  not  expect  nor  desire  that  these  ques- 
tions should  be  discussed  in  detail  in  the  pulpit.  What 
such  a  hearer  resents,  and  resents  with  good  reason,  is  that 
the  preacher  should  show  by  his  handling  of  his  subject 
either  that  he  is  ignorant  of  what  he  ought  to  know,  or 
that,  though  not  ignorant,  he  does  not  allow  his  knowledge 
to  have  its  due  influence  on  his  method  of  exposition  of 
the  Scriptures.  Competence  and  candour  are  legitimate 
demands  of  the  pew  upon  the  pulpit. 

In  the  fourth  place,  it  is  possible  so  to  present  the 
moral  and  religious  truth  of  the  Bible,  detached  from  the 
traditional  view  hitherto  associated  with  it  and  in  consist- 
ency with  modern  scholarship,  that  gradually  and  insensibly 
a  congregation  is  moved  from  one  standpoint  to  the  other, 
so  that  it  becomes  detached  from  the  traditional,  and 
accustomed  to  the  critical  without  any  feeling  of  the  loss 
of  anything  valuable  for  conscience  or  spirit.  While  there 
are  prejudiced  bigots  of  the  new  as  well  as  of  the  old, 
who  would  like  the  pulpit  to  be  aggressive  either  tradition- 
ally or  critically,  most  Christian  men  and  women  desire 
simply  to  hold  fast  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  the  faith 
once  for  all  delivered  to  the  saints,  and  are  relieved  to  find 
that  they  can  retain  what  alone  they  can  value  as  well  in 
the  new  as  in  the  old  position  on  all  critical  questions. 

3.  In  the  considerations  just  presented  it  has  been 
assumed  that  modern  scholarship  does  not  affect  the 
substance  of  the  Christian  Gospel,  and  this  assumption 
must  as  briefly  as  possible  be  justified.^ 

(1)  It  will  be  readily  conceded  that  questions  of  date, 
authorship,  modes  of  composition  of  the  writings  in  the 
Bible,  do  not  affect  matters  of  faith  unless  in  so  far  as  the 
credibility  of  the  history  recorded,  or  the  trustworthiness  of 

^  The  question  has  been  discussed  by  Dr.  Forsyth,  in  his  book  already 
mentioned,  Positive  Preaching,  pp.  106-109,  as  well  as  by  Dr.  (now  Sir) 
George  Adam  Smith,  in  his  Modem  Criticism  and  the  Preaching  of  the  Old 
Testament. 


PREACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND  SCRIBE   287 

the  witnesses  of  the  divine  revelation  is  involved.  A  book 
is  not  morally  or  religiously  less  or  more  valuable  because 
it  was  written  by  one  author  or  another,  in  one  century  or 
another.  Poetry  may  convey  truth  even  more  effectively 
than  does  prose ;  the  literary  character  of  a  writing  affects 
our  method  of  exposition,  and  not  the  substance  of  its 
message  for  us.  If  modern  scholarship  had  changed  our 
traditional  views  of  the  Bible  in  these  respects  only,  there 
would  be  no  problem  about  which  we  need  trouble  our- 
selves. It  must  be  admitted,  however,  that  we  are  forced 
to  face  the  question  whether  the  history  of  the  divine  revela- 
tion and  the  human  redemption  as  recorded  in  the  Scrip- 
tures is  substantially  accurate.  Did  God  fulfil  His  purpose 
in  the  Hebrew  nation  progressively  making  Himself  and 
His  will  known  to  man,  or  was  the  history  just  the  same 
as  that  of  any  other  nation,  and  was  the  difference  which 
the  records  present  not  objective  reality  but  subjective 
illusion  ?  Was  there  no  choice  and  call,  no  guidance  and 
guardianship,  no  teaching  and  training  of  this  people  by 
God  ?  Did  Jesus  exist  at  all,  or  was  He,  if  He  did  exist, 
in  reality  Christ,  Saviour,  Lord,  as  He  now  is  for  the 
Christian  faith  ?  Is  the  New  Testament  the  literature 
of  an  actual  religious  movement  which  was  as  it  is  there 
represented,  or  is  it  the  result  of  the  mythical  tendency 
of  all  religion  ?  Can  the  death  and  rising  again  of  Jesus 
be  resolved  into  the  myth  of  a  dying  and  reviving  God  ? 
All  these  questions  are  not  equally  crucial  for  Christian 
faith.  The  miracles  of  Elijah  and  Elisha  mean  far  less  than 
the  miracles  of  Jesus ;  and  the  surrender  of  the  records  as 
unhistorical  would  involve  far  less  loss.  The  translation  of 
Enoch  is  immeasurably  less  significant  for  Christian  thought 
and  life  than  the  resurrection  of  Jesus.  The  accui'acy  of 
the  narratives  in  Kings  does  not  touch  us  as  Christians  so 
closely  as  does  that  of  the  Gospels.  And  when  we  insist 
on  the  necessity  of  the  trustworthiness  of  the  history  con- 
tained in  the  Scriptures  for  our  Christian  faith,  we  should 
always  recognise  these  distinctions  between  the  essential 
and  the  non-essential. 


288  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

(2)  To  the  question  whether  we  have  or  have  not  a 
historical  revelation  of  God  and  redemption  of  man,  modern 
scholarship,  candid  and  courageous,  does  allow  us  to  give 
an  affirmative  answer.  Upon  many  subordinate  matters 
there  are,  and  will  remain,  wide  differences  of  opinion ; 
but  the  general  conclusion  may  be  hazarded  that  the 
historical  reality  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  remains 
unshaken,  that  the  testimony  to  and  interpretation  of  His 
person  and  work  in  the  New  Testament  retains  its  value 
for  Christian  faith,  that  even  in  the  Old  Testament  a  pre- 
paratory and  progressive  revelation  towards  Him  can  still 
be  traced.  What  is  necessary  and  valuable  for  the  moral 
and  religious  life  in  the  Holy  Scriptures  has  not  been 
taken  away  from  the  Christian  Church  ;  and  the  preacher 
may  use  fully  and  freely  in  the  pulpit  the  teaching  of  the 
hallowed  writings. 

(3)  Although  we  must  not  try  to  answer  historical 
questions  otherwise  than  historically,  yet  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  preacher  another  consideration  remains 
relevant.  The  Scriptures  are  self-witnessing  to  the  moral 
conscience  and  religious  consciousness.  They  have  proved 
their  value  and  their  authority  in  Christian  experience, 
which  they  have  sustained,  and  Christian  character,  which 
they  have  produced.  It  is  here  that  their  pre-eminence 
in  literature  is  seen,  and  it  is  here  that  the  concern  of  the 
preacher  lies.^  Apart  from  the  trustworthiness  of  the 
historical  revelation  of  God,  especially  in  Christ,  the 
preacher  is  not  primarily  concerned  with  historical 
questions  at  all ;  but  only  with  matters  of  faith  and  duty ; 
and  to  moral  and  spiritual  discernment  the  Scriptures 
remain  unchanged  by  all  the  results  of  modern  scholarship. 

(4)  The  new  knowledge  we  have  gained  about  the 
Bible  does  not  in  the  least  degree  lessen  the  demand  that 
the  preacher  shall  be  a  scribe  as  well  as  an  apostle  and  a 
prophet ;  but  it  does  render  two  valuable  services  to  him. 
In  the  first  place,  there  is  a  simplification  of  the  content  of 

'  This  argument  has  been  developed  by  Dr.  Dale  in  his  book.  The  Living 
Christ  and  the  Four  Go-wels.     See  pp.  10-11. 


PREACHER   AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND   SCRIBE      289 

his  preacliing  as  determined  by  the  Holy  Scriptures.  A 
great  deal  in  the  Bible,  which  from  the  old  standpoint 
still  possessed  dogmatic  authority,  has  now  for  him  literary, 
biographical  and  historical  interest.  He  is  now  not  at 
all  concerned  about  defending  the  cosmology  or  anthro- 
pology of  Genesis,  or  the  morality  of  the  patriarchs  or 
judges.  Balaam's  ass  or  Jonah's  whale  are  no  more 
formidable  obstacles  in  the  path  of  faith.  He  can  now 
confine  himself  to  that  in  the  Bible  which  does 
sustain  the  Christian  experience  and  produce  the  Christian 
character. 

In  the  second  place,  there  is  a  liberation  of  his  reason 
and  conscience.  The  Bible  does  not  now  require  him  to 
believe  and  teach  what  his  knowledge  in  other  spheres  of 
inquiry  renders  unintelligible  and  incredible.  There  need 
be  no  schism  between  his  respect  for  science  and  his 
reverence  for  the  Bible.  He  is  free  to  follow  modern 
knowledge  where  it  alone  is  competent  to  lead,  and  yet  be 
loyal  to  the  truth  and  grace  of  God  offered  to  him  in 
the  Holy  Scriptures. 

4.  The  fresh  light  which  modern  scholarship  throws 
on  the  Bible  imposes  on  the  Christian  preacher  the  obliga- 
tion to  study  in  order  that  he  may  teach  according  to  the 
best  methods.  (1)  The  allegorical  method  is  now  discredited, 
and  yet  there  are  preachers  found  who  are  always  striving 
to  impose  on  the  Scriptures  another  than  the  literal  sense. 
The  only  proper  method  of  study  is  the  historical,  to  use  all 
the  resources  of  our  modern  knowledge  to  find  out  what  the 
ancient  writer  meant  that  his  words  should  mean.  Far 
from  taking  liberties  with  the  Scriptures,  this  historical 
method  alone  treats  the  Scriptures  with  the  respect  due 
to  them,  for  its  one  object  is  to  discover  the  meaning  in 
them,  and  not  to  impose  a  meaning  on  them.  By  textual 
criticism,  to  discover  as  nearly  as  possible  what  at  first 
was  actually  written ;  by  linguistic  study,  to  fix  the  exact 
meaning  of  every  word,  clause,  sentence  and  passage ;  by 
literary  criticism,  to  ascertain  what  each  writing  tells  us 
about  itself,  its  date,  author,    occasion,   literary  character 


290  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

and  historical  value;  by  historical  criticism,  to  test  the 
trustworthiness  of  each  writing  in  relation  to  the  history 
contained  in  the  writings  as  a  collection,  and  to  any  other 
historical  evidence,  and  to  construct  an  intelligible  record 
of  what  did  actually  take  place  from  this  history — this  is 
what  the  historical  method  in  its  manifold  disciplines 
attempts  to  do.  Its  ideal  is  to  make  each  reader  of  the 
Bible  an  eye-witness  of  each  scene,  an  ear-witness  of  each 
discourse,  a  contemporary  of  prophet,  evangelist,  apostle 
and  even  Jesus  Himself.  Only  when  this  has  been  done 
can  the  full  moral  and  religious  significance  of  the  writings 
be  apprehended  and  appreciated.  The  goal  is  actuality, 
reality,  truth.^ 

(2)  This  process  of  study  is  not  for  the  pulpit,  but  the 
product  is  ;  for  it  is  a  fatal  mistake  for  a  preacher  to 
suppose  that  in  his  preaching  he  can  ignore  and  neglect 
what  he  learns  as  a  student.  There  is  a  common  impres- 
sion that  the  treatment  of  the  Bible  in  the  pulpit  by 
methods  now  ignored  by  scholars  is  for  the  greater  profit 
of  the  hearers ;  and  that,  however  valuable  for  scholars, 
this  method  of  study  of  the  Bible  has  less  value  for 
Christian  believers ;  and  accordingly  a  devotional  and  a 
scholarly  study  of  the  Bible  are  contrasted.  But  against 
this  assumption  two  considerations  must  be  insisted  on. 
In  the  first  place,  if  God  be  truth,  that  cannot  be  for  profit, 
which  is  not  according  to  truth.  The  Bible,  as  it  is,  has 
far  greater  moral  and  spiritual  value  than  a  preacher 
may  arbitrarily  make  it  appear  to  be.  What  prophet  or 
apostle  or  Christ  meant  to  say  is  much  more  worth 
hearing  than  any  meaning  that  the  preacher's  fancy  may 
put  into  their  words.  And  in  the  second  place,  the  Bible 
studied  by  the  historical  method  is  a  far  more  interesting 
book  than  the  traditional  exposition  can  ever  make  it. 
Many  who  have  adopted  this  fresh  method  with  prejudice 
have  come  to  acknowledge  that  the  Bible  had  become  a 
new  book  to  them.     If  the  study  of  the  Bible  is  interest- 

'  For  a  full  discussion  of  this  method  see  Peake's  A  Guide  to  Bibli/xil 
Study. 


PREACHER  AS  APOSTLE,  PROPHET  AND  SCRIBE   291 

ing  to  the  preacher,  unless  he  is  exceptionally  unskilful,  he 
will  make  it  interesting  to  his  hearers. 

5.  While  in  the  last  part  of  this  book  the  different 
kinds  of  sermons  will  be  discussed,  it  is  relevant  to  the 
present  subject  to  add,  that  if  a  preacher  wants  to  keep 
his  freshness,  variety  and  attractiveness  in  theme  and 
treatment  alike,  he  will  aim  at  being  an  expository 
preacher,  not  in  the  narrow  sense  of  always  expounding 
in  detail  a  passage  of  scripture,  but  in  the  broad  sense  that 
even  when  he  deals  with  a  subject,  that  subject  will  be 
connected  by  no  forced  exegesis,  but  by  natural  affinity 
with  his  text,  and  that  the  context  historically  studied  will 
determine  his  treatment  of  his  text.  Many  preachers 
search  high  and  low,  near  and  far,  for  ingenious  divisions 
of  their  text,  for  varied  contents  for  their  sermons,  when 
in  the  text  itself  taken  with  its  context  there  lies  close  to 
their  hand  an  abundance  of  appropriate  material.  It  is 
only  by  such  a  method  of  preparing  his  sermon  that  the 
preacher  will  prove  himself  a  true  and  a  wise  scribe, 
rightly  dividing  among  men  the  treasures  of  truth  and 
grace  contained  in  the  storehouse  of  the  Scriptures.  It 
is  by  being  thus  a  scribe  in  dependence  on  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  a  prophet  directed  and  instructed  by  the  Spirit 
of  God,  and  an  apostle  with  a  personal  relation  to  Christ 
Himself  and  in  Christ  to  the  Christian  community  that 
the  preacher  can  assure  himself  that  he  possesses  the  truth 
from  God,  which  must  be  the  motive,  the  content  and  the 
warrant  of  his  preaching,  the  credentials  which  he  may 
confidently  offer  to  men. 


CHAPTER   II. 

THE  PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT. 

In  the  previous  chapter  an  attempt  was  made  to  indi- 
cate in  what  ways  the  Christian  preacher  might  assure 
himself  of  the  truth  of  his  preaching,  in  this  chapter  we 
must  try  to  describe  the  personality  of  the  preacher  through 
which  that  truth  is  to  be  presented.  Before  deahng  with 
this  subject  it  is  necessary  to  relate  it  to  the  preceding. 
(1)  It  is  a  common  and  persistent  error  which  seeks  in 
Christian  life  and  work  to  magnify  God  by  depreciating 
man ;  and  in  regard  to  preaching,  the  form  which  the  error 
takes  is  this :  the  truth  from  God  is  represented  as  alone 
important,  and  the  personality  of  the  preacher  as  insig- 
nificant. It  is  even  argued  that  the  more  contemptible  the 
preacher,  the  greater  glory  to  God  may  redound  from  his 
preaching ;  and  some  men  disguise  their  indolence  as  piety, 
and  do  nothing  themselves,  that  God  through  them  may  do 
all.  The  writer  can  confidently  say  that  he  has  never 
yet  heard  a  sermon  worth  listening  to  from  a  man  who 
substituted  reliance  on  the  Spirit  for  preparation.  It  is 
true  that  often  the  results  of  preaching  are  quite  dis- 
proportionate to  the  resources  of  the  preacher,  that  the 
Spirit  of  God  exalts  the  humble  and  abases  the  proud.  The 
preacher  does  not  preach  himself,  but  Christ,  and  he  seeks 
to  hide  his  own  personality  behind  the  truth.  Nevertheless 
God  does  not  despise  and  reject  the  gifts  in  human  person- 
ality which  He  has  Himself  bestowed,  and  it  is  ingratitude 
to  the  Giver  to  depreciate  His  gifts.  As  the  history  of 
preaching  has  shown,  the  great  preachers  have  been  men 
richly  endowed,  fully  equipped,  and  thoroughly  trained  for 

292 


PREACHEE  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   293 

their  work.  And  accordingly  no  preacher  need  shrink  from 
the  effort  of  making  himself  as  complete  a  personality, 
mentally,  morally  and  spiritually,  as  the  use  of  human 
powers  in  dependence  on  the  grace  of  God  will  allow  him 
to  become,  lest  he  should  appear  to  magnify  man  rather 
than  God.  In  personal  self-development  only  ignor- 
ance and  conceit  can  assume  human  self-sufficiency,  and 
fail  to  recognise  constant  and  complete  dependence  on  God, 
who  gives  the  self  to  be  developed,  and  all  the  conditions 
of  its  development.  We  do  not  show  humility  in  refusing 
to  make  of  ourselves  the  very  most  and  the  very  best  that 
we  can  in  order  that  we  may  be  as  fit  and  worthy 
instruments  of  God's  will  as  can  be.^ 

(2)  The  personality  of  the  preaclier  is  to  be  developed 
as  fully  as  possible  mentally,  spiritually  and  morally.  In 
the  mental  development  we  may  further  distinguish  two 
aspects :  there  is  the  gathering  of  as  much  knowledge  as 
possible,  there  is  also  the  forming  of  as  true  a  judgment 
on  questions  of  belief  and  of  duty  as  we  can.  We  can 
thus  distinguish  the  scholar  and  the  sage,  the  man  of 
knowledge  and  the  man  of  wisdom.  But  for  religion 
more  than  a  true  judgment  is  wanted ;  there  must 
be  vision  of  the  spiritual  as  the  real;  and  this  is  the 
gift  of  the  seer.  And  the  end  of  all  is  the  character  of 
the  saint. 

I. 

1.  As  a  scribe,  the  Christian  preacher  must  be  a 
scholar  in  all  that  relates  to  the  Bible ;  but  he  will  not  be 
even  that  unless  he  is  a  good  deal  more.  Much  nonsense 
has  been  talked  and  written  about  knowing  the  Bible 
rather  than  about  the  Bible,  although  the  contrast  is  a 
contradiction ;  for  a  man  cannot  really  know  the  Bible 
until  he  has  learned  all  he  can  from  modern  scholarship 
about  the  Bible;  and  who  can  imagine  what  knowledge 
about    the    Bible    without    knowledge    of    the    Bible    can 

*  Much  valuable  help  in  meutal  discipline  will  be  found  in  Adams'  The 
Student's  Ghiide. 


294  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

possibly  be  ?  A  pious  man  may  be  ignorant  of  scholarship, 
and  a  scholar  may  lack  piety ;  but  this  contrast  is  not 
properly  expressed  in  the  above  statement.  A  man  cannot 
know  all  worth  knowing  about  the  Bible  unless  he  is  not 
a  man  of  one  book.  Let  him  follow  out  thoroughly  any 
enquiry  that  arises  from  the  Bible,  and  he  will  be  led  into 
far  wider  fields  of  knowledge.  It  is  necessary  for  the 
Christian  preacher  who  is  thoroughly  equipped  for  his 
task  to  be  a  man  of  as  wide  a  culture  as  possible.  The 
world  is  God's  world,  and  the  knowledge  of  nature  and 
man  is  a  study  of  God's  works  and  ways.  There  is  a 
revelation  of  God  which  science,  history  and  philosophy 
can  interpret  to  us,  and  the  wider  revelation  will  not 
impoverish  but  enrich  for  wise  understanding  the  less 
extended  and  more  concentrated  revelation  of  God  through 
the  Holy  Scriptures.  Not  that  we  are  to  use  this 
wider  knowledge  merely  as  a  handmaid  to  fetch  and 
carry  for  our  theology ;  it  has  claims  upon  us  for  its 
own  worth. 

2.  It  is  now  quite  impossible  for  a  man  to  claim  "  all 
knowledge  for  his  province,"  and  for  the  preacher  what  is 
important  is  not  so  much  the  extent  of  his  knowledge  as  the 
quality  of  it.  If  the  words  may  carry  this  distinction,  he 
need  not  be  so  much  learned  as  scholarly.  To  avoid  one- 
sidedness  it  is  desirable  that  he  should  be  familiar  with 
different  kinds  of  knowledge.  It  is  probable  that  the 
training  of  ministers  has  hitherto  been  too  exclusively 
literary  and  linguistic  with  a  very  slight  addition  of 
philosophy.  (1)  There  are  mental  and  moral  sciences, 
such  as  psychology,  ethics  and  sociology,  with  which  for 
the  efficient  discharge  of  his  duties  the  preacher  must  be 
acquainted,  and  to  their  consideration  we  must  return.  In 
addition  to  these,  however,  it  does  seem  very  desirable  that 
be  should  have  some  acquaintance  with  at  least  one 
physical  science,  so  that  its  methods  of  observation,  experi- 
ment, hypothesis,  generalisation,  verification,  etc.,  may 
become  familiar  to  him.  If  a  preference  may  be  suggested, 
physics  or  biology  would  seem  to  be  of  most  interest  and 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   295 

importance  as  raising  some  of  the  fundamental  problems  to 
which  no  theologian  can  be  indifferent.^ 

(2)  His  biblical  studies  will  have  familiarised  him 
with  the  ways  of  literary  and  historical  criticism ;  but 
it  is  desirable  that  the  general  history  of  mankind  in 
outline  at  least  should  be  known  to  him,  so  that  the 
history  recorded  in  the  Scriptures  and  the  history  of  the 
Christian  Chui'ch  with  which  he  is  familiar,  should  be 
seen  in  their  proper  background.  That  a  preaclier  should 
know  his  own  age  should  need  no  mention.  He  cannot 
afford  to  pretend  the  superiority  of  not  reading  the  news- 
papers ;  but  he  should  try  so  to  read  that  he  will  not  only 
know  the  gossip  of  the  hour,  but  be  an  intelligent  and 
appreciative  observer  of  the  main  currents  of  the  world's 
life,  in  which  as  prophet  he  should  be  able  to  discern  the 
activity  of  God. 

(3)  Without  philosophy  it  seems  to  the  present  writer 
no  man  can  be  a  thinker.  Without  depreciating  the  mental 
discipline  which  may  be  derived  fi'om  the  study  oi  formal 
logic,  it  seems  to  him  that  a  man  will  learn  to  think  best 
as  he  tries  to  rethink  the  thoughts  of  the  world's  greatest 
thinkers.  He  will  discover  that  the  last  questions  to 
which  the  mind  is  driven  are  just  the  problems  which 
religion  seeks  to  solve.  Where  the  philosophical  task 
ends,  there  the  theological  begins. 

(4)  Whatever  he  knows,  or  does  not  know,  religion  he 
must  know,  not  only  in  the  familiar  form  of  the  faith  he 
himself  professes,  but  in  the  manifold  forms  in  which  the 
spirit  of  man  has  sought  the  reality  above,  beyond  and 
through  all.  Here  more  than  in  any  other  sphere  he  will 
find  that  touch  of  nature  which  makes  the  whole  world 
kin.  In  the  beliefs,  customs  and  rites  of  the  savage  he 
will  find  the  same  Godward  movement  of  man  as  in  his 
own  experience  has  met  with  the  manward  movement  of 

*  Although  the  writer  may  expose  himself  to  the  charge  of  personal  bias, 
he  feels  constrained  to  e.\press  the  conviction  that  the  requirements  for  the 
Scottish  M.A.  under  the  old  regulations  aflforded  a  better  general  discipline 
than  do  the  more  recent. 


296  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

God  in  the  revelation  and  redemption  in  Christ  Jesus.  Of 
the  value  of  literature  generally  much  will  have  to  be  said 
in  a  subsequent  chapter.^ 

II. 

1.  Knowledge,  however  extensive  and  varied,  which  is 
merely  stored  in  the  memory,  is  only  an  external  pos- 
session ;  it  becomes  an  inward  gain  only  as  judgment  is 
developed.  The  three  spheres  in  which  judgment  is  to  be 
exercised  are  the  intellectual,  the  moral  and  the  religious ; 
and  we  may  distinguish  two  excellences  of  judgment  as 
prudence  and  wisdom.  In  his  judgment  the  preacher  must 
aim  as  a  sage  to  display  both  these  excellences  in  these 
three  spheres.  (1)  Science,  history,  philosophy,  the  study  of 
religion  will  be  constantly  presenting  to  him  conclusions 
which  require  the  exercise  of  judgment.  Knowledge  does 
not  always  lead  to  judgment ;  there  have  been  only  too 
many  "  learned  fools."  In  every  department  of  knowledge, 
theories  are  advanced,  with  a  great  parade  of  learning  in 
their  support,  which  are  conclusive  on  only  one  point,  the 
lack  of  judgment  of  their  authors.  While  on  the  one 
hand  prejudice  should  never  stand  in  the  way  of  an 
impartial  examination  of  any  unfamiliar  view,  however 
much  it  may  run  counter  to  our  deeply-rooted  convictions ; 
yet,  on  the  other  hand,  all  things  must  be  proved  that  the 
good  may  always  be  held  fast.^  Theology  has  suffered 
much  from  obscurantism.  Theories,  now  generally  accepted 
among  thinkers,  were  at  first  derided  as  folly.  We  must 
not  forget  the  discredit  Christian  theology  brought  upon 
itself  by  its  attitude  to  the  doctrine  of  evolution,  or  to  the 

*  Dr.  Dale  iu  his  Nine  Lectures  <yn  Preaching  devotes  two  to  the  subject 
of  reading.  After  dealing  with  the  studies  which  belong  more  immediately 
to  the  theologian  and  the  preacher,  he  advocates  as  a  corrective  to  one- 
sidedness  a  much  wider  range  of  reading,  including  even  books  of  "a.  merely 
ephemeral  popularity,"  so  as  to  keep  the  preacher  iu  close  touch  with  his 
hearers  and  what  interests  them,  and  to  afford  a  needed  relief  from  the 
severer  strain  of  his  ordinary  studies.     See  pp.  100-102. 

» 1  Th  5-1. 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   297 

methods  of  the  higher  criticism,  and  must  avoid  the 
repetition  of  the  same  mistake.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
guardians  of  Christian  truth  are  justified  in  examining 
carefully  the  credentials  of  any  new  claimant  to  rule  the 
minds  of  men.  A  rash  acceptance  of  any  and  every  new 
theory,  and  the  ready  abandonment  of  any  and  every  old 
conviction,  which  seems  inconsistent,  are  not  proofs  of 
candour  and  courage,  but  of  foolhardiness.  In  the 
Christian  pulpit  in  recent  years  there  has  often  been  an 
indecent  haste  in  abandoning  this  or  that  verity  of  the 
Gospel  on  the  demand  of  a  review  article,  probably  written 
by  one  not  competent,  even  intellectually,  still  less  morally 
and  religiously,  to  deal  with  a  serious  and  sacred  subject. 
Better  for  the  preacher  not  to  be  quite  so  up-to-date  as 
the  cinema  theatre  than  that  he  in  his  folly  should  trouble 
the  minds  and  grieve  the  hearts  of  God's  people  by 
retelling  the  latest  theory  on  things  human  or  divine. 

(2)  The  prudence  which  weighs  well  the  arguments  for 
or  against  any  new  view,  which  tests  the  arguments  by  not 
merely  theoretical,  but  also  practical  values  and  interests, 
prepares  the  way  for  the  wisdom  which,  furnished  with 
knowledge,  but  always  controlled  by  truth,  at  last  offers 
its  judgment  for  or  against  the  new  claimant.  To  some 
extent  such  judgment  is  a  natural  gift,  as  there  seem  to  be 
some  "  born  fools "  (of  whom  not  a  few  stray  into  the 
ministry),  whom  no  amount  of  painful  discipline  can  make 
anything  else ;  but  few  indeed  are  the  men  altogether 
lacking  the  gift  in  comparison  with  those  who  do  not 
cultivate  it.  None  should  assume  he  lacks  it  until  he  has 
done  his  utmost  to  cultivate  it.  Let  the  preacher  resolve 
that  his  "  I  think  "  will  always  wait  on  his  "  I  know  " ;  that 
he  will  learn  all  he  can  about  a  subject  before  he  even 
begins  to  form  a  judgment  upon  it ;  that  he  will  not 
express  his  judgment  even  when  formed  until  it  has  stood 
the  test  of  time,  and  he  has  found  no  adequate  reason  for 
reconsideration ;  that  when  he  expresses  his  judgment  it 
will  be  only  with  such  outward  assurance  as  his  inward 
certainty  allows ;  and  that  if  his  judgment  is  one  that  may 


298  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

disturb  the  convictions  of  others,  he  will  keep  silence, 
unless  necessity  is  laid  upon  him  to  speak.  While  all  that 
the  preacher  utters  must  be  the  truth,  and  there  is  truth  in 
other  spheres  of  knowledge  than  that  which  concerns  him 
which  he  need  not  speak,  it  is  a  foolish  assumption  of 
some  preachers  that  they  are  honest  only  as  they  speak 
everything  that  they  know  or  think,  whether  it  does  or  does 
not  relate  to  the  purpose  of  preaching,  the  sustenance  of 
the  "  eternal  life  "  of  their  hearers.  They  desire  to  emulate 
Carlyle's  Teufelsdroeck  as  Professors  of  Things-in-General ; 
thus  they  mistake  the  church  for  a  lecture-hall,  and  the 
pulpit  for  a  platform ;  and  while  they  are  troubled — and 
their  audiences  still  more — about  many  things,  they  often 
let  slip  the  one  thing  needful,  and  fail  to  choose  for  them- 
selves, and  help  their  hearers  to  choose  the  better  part.^ 
In  an  age  of  so  manifold  intellectual  activity  the  preacher 
needs  the  prudence  and  wisdom  to  limit  himself  in  speech 
to  those  things  which  alone  he  is  called  to  preach. 

2.  What  he  is  concerned  about  is  goodness  and  godli- 
ness, duty  and  faith.  Here  he  must  exercise  his  judgment 
in  all  prudence  and  wisdom.  He  is,  and  must  be  a  moralist. 
(1)  The  complaint  of  the  Evangelicals  against  the  Moderates 
in  Scotland  that  they  preached  morality,  was  justified  only 
in  so  far  as  the  morality  they  preached  was  not  dis- 
tinctively Christian  morality,  and  did  not  assume  the  saving 
work  of  God's  grace  as  the  necessary  condition  of  even  its 
possibility.  The  culmination  of  the  progressive  revelation 
through  the  prophets  was  "  ethical  monotheism,"  God  one 
and  God  holy;  and  in  the  Christian  religion  morality  is 
included.  Love  to  God  and  love  to  man  are  conjoined  as 
the  fulfilment  of  all  law,  and  in  Christian  life  holiness  no 
less  than  blessedness  in  God  is  the  gift  offered  to  men. 
How  much  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  is  moral !  And  in  the 
teaching  of  the  Apostles,  doctrines  are  never  divorced  from 
duties,  and  duties  towards  men  no  less  than  towards  God. 
While  in  the  subsequent  history  of  the  Christian  Church 
the  essential  unity  of  the  religious  good    and  the   moral 

1  Lk  10"- «. 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   299 

duty  was  often  disregarded,  and  a  legalist  morality  was 
placed  alongside  of,  rather  than  derived  from  a  mystical  or 
magical  piety ;  yet  that  the  Christian  religion  enjoins  a 
morality  distinctive  of  itself  was  never  in  theory  or  in 
practice  altogether  ignored.  Luther's  view  of  Christian 
perfection  as  consisting  of  faith  in  God  and  fulfilment  of 
the  earthly  calling,  sought  to  recover  this  essential  unity. 
In  modern  Protestantism,  however,  it  is  not  always  recog- 
nised that  Christian  religion  is  the  inexhaustible  source  of 
Christian  morality,  and  that  Christian  morality  is  the 
irrepressible  expression  of  Christian  religion ;  that  Christian 
faith  by  necessity  of  its  nature  energises  in  love,^  and  that 
love's  demands  can  be  met  only  by  faith's  resources.  The 
difference  between  legal  and  evangelical  ethics  lies  in  the 
failure  of  the  one  and  the  success  of  the  other  in  main- 
taining this  essential  unity  of  goodness  and  godliness,  duty 
and  faith.  If  Christian  morality  with  its  infinite  aspira- 
tion says,  Jnle  quod  vis,  it  is  only  because  Christian 
religion  with  its  absolute  dependence  says,  Da  quod  jubes. 
This  discussion  is  not  an  irrelevance,  as  the  beginning  of 
wisdom  for  the  Christian  moralist  is  the  constant  recogni- 
tion of  this  organic  relation  of  morality  and  religion ;  and 
he  will  never  teach  Christian  morals  wisely  unless  as  *'  the 
fruits  of  the  Spirit  of  God,"  ^  as  the  work  of  the  grace  of 
Christ  in  the  soul  of  man.  He  will  measure  the  Christian 
demand  by  human  capacity,  unless  he  always  remembers 
that  the  Christian  commands  divine  resources. 

(2)  The  Christian  preacher  as  moralist  must  meet  a 
double  challenge,  theoretical  and  practical.  With  few 
exceptions  moralists,  whether  Christian  or  not,  until  recent 
years,  recognised  the  value  of  the  moral  teaching  of  Jesus, 
but  now  that  value  is  challenged  frankly  and  boldly. 
Into  this  controversy  it  is  not  necessary  to  enter  in  detail.^ 
One  duty  it  has  imposed  on  the  Christian  moralist,  which 
he  has  often  ignored.  If  he  is  to  vindicate  the  permanent 
and  universal  authority  of   the  ethics  of  Jesus,  he  must 

1  Gal  5«.  2  Gal  5». 

'  See  the  writer's  Can  we  still  follow  Jesiisf 


300  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

learn  to  distinguish  the  kernel  from  the  husk.  Even  if 
we  deny  the  position  of  the  advocates  of  the  exclusively 
eschatological  character  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus,^  that  His 
moral  teaching  is  only  an  interim  ethic,  we  must  admit  that 
to  be  effective  for  the  time  and  place  the  form  had  to  be 
adapted  to  local  and  temporary  conditions.  One  service 
Tolstoy  has  rendered  to  Christian  thought,  in  that  he  has 
shown  how  impractical  would  be  a  literalist  interpretation 
of  that  teaching.  But  it  is  easier  to  make  than  to  meet 
this  demand  to  separate  the  kernel  from  the  husk.  While 
knowledge  of  the  local  and  temporary  conditions  will 
greatly  aid,  and  without  that  knowledge  the  task  would 
be  impossible,  yet  knowledge  will  not  carry  us  all  the 
way :  to  knowledge  must  be  added  judgment.  With 
learning  we  must  conjoin  wisdom.  To  determine  what  is 
temporary  and  what  permanent,  what  local  and  what 
universal  in  the  morals  of  Jesus,  requires  a  moral  insight, 
and  one  might  even  say  tact,  which  is  no  less  real  because 
it  is  indefinable.  Here  no  rigid  rules  can  be  laid  down 
for  guidance ;  the  guidance  must  come  from  within,  from 
a  conscience  enlightened  and  quickened  by  the  Spirit  of 
God.  A  natural  gift,  too,  we  may  here  recognise  possessed 
by  some  in  greater  measure  than  by  others ;  but  it  is  a 
gift  that  can  be  cultivated,  and,  when  the  conditions  of 
development  are  fulfilled,  imparted  by  God.  "  If  any  of 
you  lack  wisdom,  let  him  ask  of  God,  and  it  shall  be  given 
him."  ^  But  God's  gifts  do  not  fall  into  folded  hands  ;  and 
the  man  who  has  studied  general  ethics  will  have  given 
the  natural  gift  that  cultivation  which  can  be  crowned  by 
the  supernatural  grace.  Such  a  question  as  that  discussed 
by  general  ethics,  whether  the  moral  end  is  a  law  or  a 
good,  is  one  the  answer  to  which  will  be  of  great  value  to 
the  Christian  moralist. 

(3)  The  Christian  moralist's  task,  however,  is  only  half 

done  when  he  has  separated  the  kernel  from  the  husk  in 

the  teaching  of  Jesus  ;  he  has  now  to  give  to  the  permanent 

and  universal  principles  he  has  thus  discovered  a  temporary 

1  See  Schweitzer's  The  Quest  of  the  Historical  Jesus.  "  Jas  1'. 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   301 

and  local  application,  if  they  are  to  be  at  all  useful  for 
present  moral  guidance.  To  do  this  he  must  know  the 
economic  and  social  conditions  of  his  own  time.  The 
industrial  revolution  of  last  century  has  so  altered  economic 
conditions,  that  what  is  comprehensively  called  the  Social 
Problem  has  emerged.  The  moral  standards  of  the 
previous  stage  of  economic  and  consequent  social  develop- 
ment have  proved  inadequate  to  give  the  necessary 
direction ;  and  the  insistent  demand  to-day  is  for  a 
morality  which  shall  be  adequate  to  the  new  conditions. 
This  is  a  demand  which  the  Christian  Church  should 
welcome,  and  not  fear,  if  it  is  warranted  in  its  confidence 
that  in  the  teaching  of  Christ  it  has  no  interim  ethic,  but 
an  ethic  which  can  be  made  applicable  always  and  every- 
where.^ 

(4)  If  the  discovery  of  the  principles  of  Christian 
morality  requires  wisdom,  the  application  of  these  principles, 
etc,  to  the  details  of  conduct  demands  prudence,  and 
involves  a  knowledge  of  the  conditions  under  which  the 
Christian  ideal  is  to  be  realised.  These  conditions  are  the 
subject  of  study  in  the  sciences  of  economics  and  sociology. 
It  would  be  unreasonable  to  expect  the  preacher  to  be  an 

^  The  following  may  be  commended  for  this  study : 

1.  General  Ethics. — J.  S.  Mill's  Utilitarianism  ;  H.  Sidgwick's  History 
of  Ethics  and  Method  of  Ethics  ;  H.  Spencer's  Data  of  Ethics ;  T.  H. 
Green's  Prolegomena  to  Ethics ;  Leslie  Stephen's  Science  of  Ethics ;  J. 
Martineau's  Types  of  Ethical  Theory  ;  S.  Alexander's  Moral  Order  and 
Progress  ;  J.  S.  Mackenzie's  Manual  of  Ethics  ;  J.  H.  Muirhead's  Elements 
of  Ethics ;  J.  Seth's  Study  of  Ethical  Principles  ;  W.  E.  Sorley's  Ethics  of 
Naturalism  and  The  Moral  Life  ;  W.  RashdaU's  The  Theory  of  Good  and 
Evil  and  Christ  and  Conscience. 

2.  Christian  Ethics. — Martensen's  Christian  Ethics ;  Newman  Smyth's 
Christian  Ethics ;  Haering's  Ethics  of  the  Christian  Life ;  Dobschiitz' 
Christian  Life  in  the  Primitive  Church  ;  Murray's  Handbook  of  Christian 
Ethics  ;  Strong's  Christian  Ethics  ;  Illingworth's  Christian  Character. 

8.  Modem  Social  Ethics. — Christ  and  Civilization  ;  Muir's  Christianity 
and  Labour  ;  Bruce's  Social  Aspects  of  Christian  Morality  ;  Peabody's  Jesus 
Christ  cmd  the  Social  Question,  The  Approach  to  the  Social  Questimi  and 
Christian  Life  in  the  Modem  World  ;  Shailer  Matthew's  Social  Teaching  of 
Jesus ;  Rauschenbush's  Christianizing  the  Social  Order.  There  are  numerous 
series  of  books  dealing  with  particular  problems  of  jnodern  society,  but  the 
above  are  general  discussions. 


302  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

expert  in  these  sciences ;  and  it  would  be  folly  for  him 
without  expert  knowledge  to  dogmatise  in  the  pulpit  on 
these  subjects.  But  a  preacher  may  be  expected,  in  view 
of  the  present  urgency  of  the  Social  Problem,  to  have  a 
general  knowledge  of  these  sciences,  and  a  detailed  know- 
ledge of  the  special  conditions,  industrial  and  social,  under 
which  his  hearers  may  be  expected  to  put  into  practice  the 
principles  which  he  teaches  from  the  pulpit.  There  are 
complex  problems  with  which  only  one  with  special  know- 
ledge could  safely  deal ;  but  what  Christian  love  demands 
in  the  world  to-day  is  not  so  very  difficult  to  discover,  that 
on  account  of  the  lack  of  expert  knowledge  the  pulpit  can 
be  condemned  to  silence  on  the  vital  issues  of  the  hour. 
Adequate  knowledge  and  the  sound  judgment,  which  a 
training  in  ethics  and  sociology  may  be  helpful  in  securing, 
are  the  requirements  for  the  preacher,  if  as  the  sage  with 
both  prudence  and  wisdom  he  is  to  meet  the  challenge  of 
the  age  for  guidance  from  Christian  ethics. 

3.  A  Christian  congregation  needs  guidance  as  regards 
faith  as  well  as  duty ;  and  so  the  preacher  must  be 
theologian  as  well  as  moralist.  If  there  has  been  dis- 
turbance of  moral  standards,  there  has  been  no  loss  of 
religious  beliefs.  As  the  new  industrial  situation  has 
presented  a  challenge  in  morals,  so  the  new  intellectual 
position  in  beliefs.  (1)  When  the  provinces  of  science  and 
theology  are  correctly  defined,  there  need  not  be  conflict 
between  the  conclusions  of  the  one  and  the  convictions  of 
the  other ;  we  now  recognise  that  the  attempts  to  reconcile 
geology  and  Genesis,  Darwin  and  Moses,  in  regard  to  nature 
and  man  were  vain  futilities,  as  here  there  lies  no  good 
ground  for  quarrel.  The  danger  from  science  is  rather 
when,  going  beyond  its  province,  it  essays  a  task  for  which 
its  methods  do  not  secure  it  the  competence,  and  attempts 
to  answer  the  ultimate  questions  of  reality  in  contradiction 
of  the  answer  given  by  religious  or  Christian  faith.  So 
successful,  too,  have  been  the  methods  of  science  in  its  own 
sphere,  that  there  is  the  peril  of  the  attempt  being  made  to 
apply  the  same  methods  in  the  sphere  of  the  supersensible 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   303 

and  the  supernatural  where  they  do  not  apply.  Of  the 
disturbance  of  faith  due  to  the  conclusions  of  the  literary 
and  historical  criticism  of  the  Bible  enough  has  already 
been  said  in  the  previous  chapter.  Philosophy  may 
legitimately  claim  to  answer  these  last  questions,  and  may 
offer  answers  which  conflict  with  faith's  assurances.^  When 
such  a  conflict  ensues,  the  Christian  thinker  must  first  of  all 
make  sure  that  what  is  opposed  is  an  assurance  of  faith, 
and  not  an  opinion  of  his  own,  which  has  no  claim  to  be 
regarded  as  necessary  for  faith.  In  the  next  place  he  must 
examine  the  conclusion  of  philosophy  to  discover  if  all  the 
data,  moral  and  religious  as  well  as  intellectual,  have  been 
taken  into  account,  and  have  had  full  justice  done  to  them  ; 
and  he  will  often  find  that  the  philosophy  has  been  too 
exclusively  intellectual,  and  has  not  recognised  the  practical 
interests  of  men  in  religion  and  morals.  Even  if  theoreti- 
cally the  philosophy  should  seem  to  make  out  its  case,  he 
may  fall  back  on  his  own  experience  of  God  as  saving 
grace  in  Christ,  confirmed  by  the  common  experience  of 
the  Christian  Church,  and  find  there  a  firm  foundation, 
when  all  opinions  seem  to  be  shaken. 

(2)  In  defending  and  commending  the  Christian  Gospel 
thus  challenged,  the  preacher  needs  knowledge ;  ^  but  here, 
too,  he  still  more  wants  judgment.  And  the  judgment 
which  in  the  religious  as  in  the  moral  sphere  he  is  called 
to  exercise  is  not  a  merely  intellectual  activity ;  it  is  con- 
ditioned, and  legitimately  conditioned,  by  his  personal  hopes 

^  See  the  writer's  The  RitscMian  Theology,  chap.  iii. 

^  It  is  manifestly  impossible  to  attempt  here  to  give  a  list  of  theological 
books,  for  so  varied  and  numerous  are  they.  But  attention  may  be  called 
to  the  other  volumes  in  the  series  in  which  this  volume  appears.  Another 
series  also  deserves  meution,  The  Studies  in  Theology,  published  by  Duck- 
worth &  Co.  In  this  series  the  bibliography  with  which  each  volume  is 
furnished  affords  a  useful  guide  to  the  relevant  literature.  Messrs. 
Williams  &  Norgate  in  their  Theological  Translation  Library  and  in  their 
Grown  Tlieological  Library  have  placed  many  foreign  books  within  the 
reach  of  English  readers.  The  use  of  Hastings'  Bible  Dictionary  and 
Encylapaidia  of  Religion  and  Ethics  offers  an  almost  boundless  range  of 
inquiry  to  the  preacher.  The  writer  may  venture  to  mention  his  own  book, 
The  Christian  Certainty  amid  the  Modern  Perjilexity,  as  treating  very  much 
more  fully  what  it  has  been  necessary  to  handle  here  in  a  very  cursory  way. 


304  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

and  fears,  needs  and  aspirations ;  by  his  hunger  for  right-  ] 
eousness  and  his  thirst  for  God,  His  moral  conscience  and 
his  religious  consciousness  as  well  as  his  speculative 
intellect  must  be  brought  into  play  in  this  judgment ;  for 
neither  can  goodness  be  appreciated,  nor  God  apprehended 
by  a  purely  intellectual  process ;  and  grace  can  be  re- 
ceived only  in  actual  experience,  in  which  the  whole  man 
is  involved.  That  the  preacher  should  have  as  wide  a 
knowledge  of  theology,  and  its  wider  intellectual  context 
in  science,  criticism  and  philosophy,  is  most  desirable ;  but 
what  is  essential  is  that  he  should  cultivate  spiritual  dis- 
cernment— that  he  should  have  a  keen  sense  of  both  moral 
and  religious  realities.  The  two  are  not  always  pro- 
portionate to  one  another.  A  man  of  wide  knowledge 
even  in  all  that  pertains  to  theology  may  be  singularly 
lacking  in  the  wisdom  which  discerns  what  is  true  and 
worthy ;  and  there  have  been  humble  Christian  believers 
who  had  a  very  quick  and  keen  sense  for  the  things  that 
really  matter  for  the  soul  of  man.  If  a  preacher  lacks  this 
wisdom  he  will  select  themes,  and  so  treat  them  that  there 
will  be  little  spiritual  profit  to  his  hearers,  however 
brilliant  intellectually  his  preaching  may  be.  If  he  has 
this  wisdom,  he  will  not  be  concerned  about  the  impression 
of  his  own  ability  that  he  may  make ;  he  will  not  choose 
the  subjects  of  ephemeral  interest  and  superficial  value, 
but  he  will  always  be  handling  these  certainties  for  faith 
which  bring  the  soul  into  closest  contact  with  and  under 
the  most  effective  control  of  the  eternal  divine  realities  of 
God,  which  enlighten,  cleanse  and  renew  the  soul,  and 
bring  to  the  need  of  man  the  abounding  resources  of  God, 
It  is  thus  that  he  can  prove  himself  a  sage  dowered  both 
with  earthly  prudence  and  heavenly  wisdom. 

III. 

1.  The  Christian  preacher  must  be  more  than  a  sage, 
however,  he  must  be  a  seer  as  well.  The  sage  judges  in 
morals  and  religion  what  is  given  to  him  in  the  divine 


PKEACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEES,  SAINT   305 

revelation,  and  the  thoughts  of  men  regarding  that  revela- 
tion :  the  seer,  while  dependent  on  that  revelation,  seeks 
to  realise  for  himself  in  the  soul's  vision  the  reality  so 
revealed.  We  need  not  claim  with  some  of  the  mystics 
a  special  organ  for  the  knowledge  of  God  apart  from  and 
above  reason  and  conscience ;  and  yet  there  is  a  difference 
between  the  man  who  knows  God  as  it  were  by  report, 
and  the  man  who  has  the  perception  of  the  reality  of 
God.  Must  we  not  admit  that  for  many  Christians  the 
reality  of  God  is  a  matter  of  evidence  and  inference,  and 
not  of  experience  ?  If  the  word  imagination  did  not 
suggest  fiction  rather  than  fact,  we  might  speak  of  the 
spiritual  imagination  for  which  God,  Christ,  the  Spirit, 
truth,  grace,  holiness,  glory,  blessedness  are  not  abstrac- 
tions but  realities,  even  as  things  seen  and  handled.  There 
is  a  faith  which  so  realises  the  unseen  that  it  becomes 
certain  as  is  the  seen.^  It  is  only  to  degrade  this  vision 
of  the  soul  when  hallucinations  of  sense  are  regarded  as 
confirming  its  certainty,  although  it  can  find  expression  in 
figurative  language  as  it  cannot  in  abstract  terms.  It  is 
the  danger  of  the  moralist  and  the  theologian  that  he 
thinks  and  speaks  in  abstractions,  and  so  may  convey  to 
those  to  whom  he  speaks  a  sense  of  the  unreality  rather 
than  of  the  reality  of  those  subjects  about  which  he  is 
speaking.  Men  do  often  feel  that  the  preacher  is  offering 
them  the  stones  of  doctrines  about  God  instead  of  the 
bread  of  the  reality  of  God.  And  yet  he  who  thinks 
much  about  God  need  not  on  that  account  lose  his  inward 
sight  of  God.  Paul  combined  in  a  remarkable  degree  the 
capacity  of  the  sage  and  of  the  seer.  The  living  Christ, 
whom  his  bodily  eye  had  not  beheld  in  the  days  of  his 
flesh,  is  more  real  to  him  than  to  any  of  the  Evangehsts, 
except  the  Fourth.  It  may  be  frankly  admitted  that  here 
we  are  concerned  with  an  endowment  which  all  believers 
do  not  equally  share,  and  that  some  could  not  by  any 
amount  of  cultivation  gain.  Some  genuine  Christians 
live  by  testimony  rather  than  experience ;  and  we  must 

1  He  111. 


306  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

not  depreciate  them  if  their  lives  show  the  fruits  of  the 
Spirit  of  God :  and  yet  for  the  preacher  it  is  surely 
essential  that  he  should  have  this  power  of  realising  God, 
and  all  that  belongs  to  the  life  in  God,  and  that  he  should 
be  able  to  make  his  sense  of  the  reality  of  God  as  it  were 
contagious,  so  that  even  if  his  hearers  do  not  share  his 
vision,  yet  they  will  share  the  certainty  which  the  vision 
gives  to  him.  If  he  cannot  get  beyond  the  attitude  in  the 
prologue  to  Tennyson's  "  In  Memoriam  " : 

"We  have  but  faith:  we  cannot  know; 
For  knowledge  is  of  things  we  see," 

he  will  lack  an  essential  condition  of  the  highest  kind  of 
power  in  preaching.  He  must  be  able  to  say,  "  I  know, 
because  in  inward  vision  I  see  God,  real  as  the  things  of 
sense  are." 

2.  The  writer  must  confess  that  he  has  never  been 
attracted  much  by  the  literature  of  mysticism ;  *  for  it 
seems  to  him  to  seek  the  right  end  by  the  wrong  means. 
(1)  The  end  of  all  religion  is  the  direct  contact,  the 
intimate  communion  of  the  soul  with  God,  such  an 
experience  of  God  that  in  intensity  of  feeling  and  cer- 
tainty of  thought  it  can  compare  even  with  sensible 
experience.  In  the  measure  in  which  a  man  has  such  a 
vision  of  God,  can  he  testify  to  men  the  reality  of  God. 
But  just  as  the  perceptions  of  sense  on  analysis  by 
psychology  show  a  very  complex  process  of  mediation 
between  the  mind  and  the  world,  even  so  this  experience 
of  God  is  not  immediate  and  altogether  incapable  of 
analysis.  After  the  analysis  is  carried  as  far  as  it  can 
be  in  either  case,  there  remains  an  indescribable  remainder. 
In  both  cases,  too,  there  may  be  the  sense  of  immediate 
knowledge  without  any  consciousness  of  the  process  of 
mediation.     Another  analogy  may  make  the  matter  still 

^  Among  recent  books  may  be  mentioned  Baron  von  Hiigel's  The  Mystical 
Element  of  Religion ;  Inge,  Christiwn  Mysticism  ;  Kufus  M.  Jones,  Studies 
in  Mystical  Religion  ;  Underbill,  The  Mystic  Way ;  Herman,  The  Meaning 
and  Value  of  Mysticism. 


PKEACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   307 

clearer.  In  the  communion  of  living  souls  there  is  a  sense 
of  immediacy,  and  yet  the  content  of  their  communion 
with  one  another,  which  gives  it  its  value,  does  not  consist 
only  of  the  words  of  the  moment,  and  the  thoughts  the 
words  express,  or  the  feelings  they  awaken,  but  includes, 
unanalysed,  yet  capable  of  analysis  by  reflection,  the 
common  life  of  the  former  years.  In  the  same  way  surely 
the  soul's  communion  with  God  not  only  includes  the 
momentary  experience,  but  has  its  distinctive  quality  deter- 
mined by  the  whole  past  experience  of  His  truth  and  grace. 
(2)  If  this  psychological  analysis  is  correct,  then  it 
follows  that  God  is  not  more  directly  known  by  a  with- 
drawal into  the  subjectivity  of  the  experient,  but  rather 
by  an  apprehension  of  all  that  is  included  in  the  objectivity 
of  the  experienced.  Not  by  suppression  of  the  human 
personality  in  its  manifold  activities,  nor  by  absorption 
in  the  mood  of  the  moment  can  the  steady  and  clear 
vision  of  God  be  maintained ;  but  surely  by  living  life 
as  fully  as  possible  S2ib  specie  divinitatis.  Nature,  history, 
man,  can  all  be -media 'of  this  direct  contact  with  God. 
To  assume  otherwise  involves  a  false  dualism  of  God  and 
the  world  He  has  made,  and  in  which  He  dwells.  The 
mysticism  which  flees  from  the  without  to  the  within  to 
find  God,  and  seeks  God  in  the  within,  not  in  the  normal 
psychical  activities,  but  in  ecstasy,  or  some  abnormal  state, 
is  the  practical  application  of  a  doctrine  of  divine  trans- 
cendence, which  so  separates  God  from  nature  and  man, 
that  He  cannot  be  found  in  them,  A  doctrine  of  divine 
immanence  should  have  as  its  practical  application  a  seek- 
ing and  a  finding  of  God  as  the  reality  in  all  and  through 
all  and  over  all.  The  writer  has  learned  more  from 
Spinoza  than  from  any  of  the  mystical  writers  about  the 
practice  of  the  presence  of  God ;  and  even  Hegel  seems 
to  him  nearer  the  truth  as  regards  the  vision  of  God  than 
a  neo-Platonic  mysticism.  For  Christian  religion  especially 
is  the  reality  of  God  mediated  historically  by  Jesus  Christ, 
and  by  that  mediation  not  less  directly  or  certainly  known, 
but  even  possessed  more  fully  and  surely. 


308  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

3.  The  writer  must  further  confess  that  he  cannot  for 
himself  follow  a  great  deal  of  the  advice  which  is  given 
regarding  the  cvdtivation  of  the  devout  life.  He  even 
questions  whether  the  devout  life  is  to  be  isolated,  and 
cultivated  by  itself  and  for  itself.  Such  a  practice  pro- 
motes an  artificial  pietism  rather  than  a  natural  piety. 
He  believes  rather  that  the  whole  personality  in  its 
manifold  activities  should  be  developed  with  Christ  God- 
wards.  He  believes  that  there  can  be  unceasing  prayer 
in  all  interests  and  pursuits  by  maintaining  the  spirit  of 
dependence  on,  and  submission  to  God.  He  cannot  dis- 
tinguish a  devotional  study  of  the  Bible  which  is  not  also 
scholarly,  from  a  scholarly  which  is  not  also  devotional. 
Arduous  theological  thought  is  for  him  also  pious  medita- 
tion ;  and  the  solution  of  problems  of  thought  is  the 
discovery  of  God  Himself.  That  the  preacher  must  pray 
much  and  meditate  much,  and  hold  as  constant  and 
intimate  communion  with  God  in  Christ  as  is  possible  to 
him  in  order  to  become  a  seer,  one  to  whom  God  is 
reality  more  certain  than  any  of  the  things  of  sense,  none 
would  afiirm  more  strongly  than  would  he ;  but  he  will 
not  venture  to  offer  any  precise  rules  as  to  how  this  fellow- 
ship with  God  is  to  be  maintained.  Of  one  thing  he  is 
convinced,  however,  that  the  more  completely  the  whole 
of  life  is  suffused  with  the  light  and  heat  of  the  realised 
presence  of  God,  and  the  less  devotion  is  kept  in  a  place 
apart,  the  broader  and  stronger  will  the  piety  be.  A  few 
sentences  of  a  master  preacher  may  be  added :  "  It  may 
scarcely  be  needful,"  says  Spurgeon,  "  to  commend  to  you 
the  sweet  uses  of  private  devotion,  and  yet  I  cannot 
forbear.  To  you,  as  the  ambassadors  of  God,  the  mercy- 
seat  bears  a  virtue  beyond  all  estimate ;  the  more  familiar 
you  are  with  the  court  of  heaven  the  better  shall  you 
discharge  your  heavenly  trust.  Among  all  the  formative 
influences  which  go  to  make  up  a  man  honoured  of  God 
in  His  ministry,  I  know  of  none  more  mighty  than  his  own 
familiarity  with  the  mercy-seat.  All  that  a  college  career 
can  do  for  a  student  is  coarse  and  external  compared  with 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   309 

the  spiritual  and  delicate  refinement  obtained  by  com- 
munion with  God.  While  the  unformed  minister  is 
revolving  upon  the  wheel  of  preparation,  prayer  is  the 
tool  of  the  great  potter  by  which  he  moulds  the  vessel. 
All  our  libraries  and  studies  are  mere  emptiness  compared 
with  our  closets.  We  grow,  we  wax  mighty,  we  prevail 
in  private  prayer."  ^ 

IV. 

1.  The  proof  of  the  life  hid  with  Christ  in  God  is  the 
light  that  so  shines  before  men,  that  they  may  see  the 
good  works,  and  glorify  the  Father  which  is  in  heaven.^ 
If  only  the  pure  in  heart  can  see  God,  the  saint  alone  can 
be  the  seer ;  he  who  beholds  the  glory  of  the  Lord  will  be 
changed  into  the  same  likeness  from  glory  to  glory ,^  the 
seer  will  become  the  saint.  Christian  experience  and 
Christian  character  are  mutually  dependent ;  they  must  be 
developed  together.  If  the  preacher  must  be  one  who  sees 
God,  he  must  also  be  pure  in  heart.  Modern  Christendom 
is  afraid  of  the  word  saint,  and  regards  saintship  as  the 
privilege  of  a  select  few,  and  not  the  obligation  of  all. 
We  must  first  of  all  understand  that  when  the  New  Testa- 
ment speaks  of  saints  it  does  not  mean  the  sinless  and 
perfect;  the  term  describes  the  ideal  and  not  the  actuality 
of  believers,  the  destiny  to  which  they  are  called  in  Christ 
Jesus.  Such  an  ideal,  however,  imposes  the  constant  effort 
to  realise  it.  There  must  be  no  base  content  with  faults 
and  failures :  there  must  be  eager  aspiration  to  become  all 
that  by  the  grace  of  Christ  is  attainable.  The  abandon- 
ment of  the  pursuit  of  holiness,  and  the  acquiescence  in  a 
condition  of  only  moral  respectability  is  a  common  defect 

*  Lectures  to  my  Students — First  Series,  p.  41.  A  few  books  on  the 
subject  of  prayer  may  be  mentioned  :  Carey's  Some  Difficulties  of  Prayer ; 
H.  G.  Moule's  Secret  Prayer :  The  Fellowship  of  Silence,  ed.  C.  Hepher ; 
Poulain's  Graces  of  Interior  Prayer ;  E.  Benson's  Communings  of  a  Day  ; 
Mroe.  Guyon's  A  Short  and  Easy  Method  of  Prayer ;  William  Law's  The 
Spirit  of  Prayer;  St.  Theresa's  The  Way  of  Perfection ',  Bro.  Lawience's 
The  Practice  of  the  Presence  of  God. 

2  Mt  516.  8  Mt  58,  2  Co  3'^ 


310  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

in  Christians  which  brings  discredit  on  the  moral  sufficiency 
of  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus ;  for  to  attempt  little 
is  to  distrust  much ;  to  rest  in  sin  is  to  disbelieve  in  grace. 
2.  If  the  preacher  is  to  preach  holiness,  he  must 
himself  desire  holiness,  and  must  impress  his  hearers  as 
one  who  is  seeking  after  holiness.  Not  only  does  a  reputa- , 
tion  inconsistent  with  the  sacred  functions  of  the  preacher! 
rob  his  message  of  its  life  and  power,  but  a  man's  character 
will,  in  spite  of  himself,  affect  the  tone  and  content  of  his 
preaching.  A  consummate  hypocrite  may  possibly  give 
the  impression  of  a  holiness  which  he  does  not  possess. 
Some  years  ago  a  man  who  had  been  forced  to  leave  one 
pastorate  after  another  in  England  on  account  of  his  bad 
character  went  to  America,  and  for  a  time  conducted  what 
at  least  appeared  to  be  successful  meetings  for  the  deepen- 
ing of  the  spiritual  life.^  Eeligious  emotionalism  is  not 
infrequently  accompanied  by  moral  weakness.  While  it 
would  be  rash  to  say  that  the  effect  of  any  man's  preaching 
corresponds  exactly  in  quality  and  degree  with  his  personal 
character,  since  the  Spirit  of  God  is  not  limited  by  His 
human  agent;  yet,  allowing  for  such  exceptions  as  have 
been  mentioned,  we  may  say  that  the  worth  of  a  man's 
preaching  will  be  measured  not  only  by  his  reputation 
amoDg  men,  but  even  by  his  character,  which  in  countless 
ways  affects  the  passion  and  power,  the  temper  and  tone 
of  his  preaching.  Not  only  when  preaching  morals  will  a 
man  betray  his  own  moral  level,  but  even  in  presenting 
the  grace  which  saves  from  sin  he  will  show  the  fineness 
or  coarseness  of  his  conscience  by  the  way  in  which  he 
deals  with  sin,  by  the  kinds  of  sin  which  he  denounces, 
by  his  emphasis  on  sin  itself,  or  on  the  consequences  of  sin. 
Any  hearer  of  keen  moral  sensibility  is  a  judge  of  the 
preacher's  moral  quality,  whether  lofty  or  low,  and  the 
impression  left  will  vary,  even  when  there  is  no  conscious 
judgment.  Thus  moral  respectability  is  not  enough ;  there 
must  be  moral  truth  in  the  inward  parts  for  full  moral 

1  Of  a  preacher  who  was  indeed  a  brand  plucked  from  the  burning,  a 
hearer  said  that  he  had  always  the  smell  of  the  fire  upon  him. 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   311 

effect  in  preaching.  There  is  a  kind  of  "  revival "  preach- 
ing in  which  emotional  effect  is  the  object  aimed  at,  and 
for  which  little  moral  demand  may  be  made  on  the 
preacher;  one  hears  of  successful  evangelists  of  dubious 
reputation,  and  even  of  the  employment  of  these  evangelists 
because  of  their  success  where  that  reputation  is  known. 
But  this  is  a  scandal  which  weakens  the  moral  influence 
of  the  Christian  Church.  But  apart  altogether  from  the 
impression  of  the  preacher's  character  on  his  hearers,  any 
man  worthy  to  fulfil  this  calling  will  demand  of  himself 
that  though  he  may  often  fall  far  short  of  his  ideal,  he 
should  honestly,  earnestly  and  constantly  endeavour  to 
realise  it,  and  hold  no  success  as  a  preacher  compensation 
for  his  own  failure  as  a  Christian  man. 

3.  It  is  not  necessary  here  to  deal  with  the  Christian 
character  as  a  whole,  but  there  are  sins  which  do  most 
easily  beset  the  preacher  which  may  be  mentioned  as 
serious  hindrances  to  saintship,  and  they  are  mentioned 
just  because  they  are  far  from  uncommon  among  preachers. 
(1)  The  calling  itself  brings  with  it  a  secret  and  subtle 
peril  to  the  preacher  in  the  desire  for  the  praise  or  the 
dread  of  the  blame  of  men.  Human  applause  may  mean 
more  than  divine  approval.  Popularity  may  appear  to 
him  his  heaven,  and  obscurity  his  hell.^  A  false  estimate 
of  the  value  of  preaching  prevails.  Does  the  preacher 
draw  ?  Does  he  please  ?  Do  his  hearers  praise  ?  These 
are  the  questions  asked ;  and  not  such  as  these :  Did  he 
utter  the  truth  fully  and  fearlessly  ?  Did  he  offer  the 
grace  of  God  tenderly  and  earnestly  ?  Did  he  call  men  to 
repentance,  faith,  holiness  effectively  ?  Even  if  the  preacher 
escapes  the  degradation  of  trimming  his  sails  to  catch  the 
breeze  of  popularity ;  even  if  the  content  and  purpose  of 
his  sermons  remain  right,  yet  he  may  very  easily  in 
preaching  think  rather  of  the  ability  he  is  displaying,  and 
the  reputation  he  is  acquiring,  than  of  the  glory  of  God 
and  the  gain  of  man. 

(2)  When  a  man  falls  before  the  temptation  of  seeking 

*  See  Chrysostom's  warning,  quoted  at  pp.  64-65. 


312  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

and  prizing  popularity,  another  fault  often  appears.  He 
gives  himself  "  airs " ;  he  looks  down  on  men,  it  may  be 
really  abler  and  worthier  than  himself,  who  are  not  as 
popular  as  he  is ;  he  is  not  among  his  brethren  as  the  least 
of  all,  but  makes  it  plain  that  he  regards  himself,  and 
expects  to  be  regarded,  as  the  greatest  of  all.  The  people 
who  throng  to  hear  the  popular  preacher  and  offer  him 
lavishly  the  incense  of  praise,  and  the  Press  (the  so-called 
"religious")  which  "booms"  him  are  responsible  for  the 
moral  deterioration  of  some  whom  they  sought  to  make 
idols,  but  have  made  victims.  While  the  preacher  may 
legitimately  aim  at  attracting,  interesting  and  impressing 
his  hearers,  it  must  ever  be  for  the  sake  of  the  Gospel  he 
preaches  that  it  may  have  free  course  and  be  glorified,  and 
never  for  his  own  sake  that  he  may  be  praised  and  idolised. 
The  man  who,  despising  popularity,  is  careless  of  the  effect 
of  his  preaching,  is  not  proving  his  superiority  to  the  man 
who  seeks  popularity,  because  he  is  also  an  unfaithful 
servant,  as  he,  too,  is  thinking  more  of  himself  than  of  his 
Gospel.  The  escape  from  this  danger  is  on  the  one  hand 
to  magnify  the  truth  and  grace  of  God  preached,  and  on 
the  other  to  regard  the  preacher  as  not  in  himself  sufficient 
or  worthy  for  so  high  a  calling.  Devotion  to  Christ,  which 
humbles  in  penitence  and  exalts  only  in  pardon,  will  save 
the  preacher  from  self-devotion. 

(3)  But  popularity  as  a  preacher  brings  other  worldly 
gains  besides  the  praise  of  men.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted 
that  no  better  method  of  offering  some  recognition  of  the 
service  rendered  by  a  preacher  than  the  paying  of  a  fee  has 
been  devised,  and  still  more  to  be  regretted  that  the  amount 
of  the  fee  is  often  proportionate  to  the  popularity  which 
the  preacher  possesses,  or  at  least  is  supposed  or  supposes 
himself  to  possess.  One  has  heard  even  of  preachers  who 
themselves  fix  the  fees  they  expect  in  payment  for  their 
eloquence  in  the  service  of  the  Gospel.  One  would  fain 
believe  that  it  is  rarely  that  a  preacher  so  degrades  his 
calling  as  to  treat  it  as  a  means  of  worldly  gain.  That 
preachers  need  to  be  supported,  that  they  should  be  freed 


PREACHER  AS  SCHOLAR,  SAGE,  SEER,  SAINT   313 

from  money  anxieties  may  be  conceded.  But  a  preacher  is 
a  profane  person  like  Esau  ^  who  cares  at  all  for  the  fees, 
and  not  altogether  for  the  sacred  task  of  preaching. 

(4)  A  fourth  peril  of  the  preacher  is  that  out  of  the 
pulpit  he  may  not  in  his  conversation  and  manner  adorn 
the  doctrine  he  preaches.  Humour  is  legitimate  in  and 
out  of  the  pulpit,  but  there  is  sometimes  displayed  by  the 
preacher  either  a  flippancy  or  a  coarseness  which  is  a 
glaring  contrast  to  the  message  with  which  he  is  entrusted. 
An  artificial  manner  and  an  unnatural  solemnity  are  not  at 
all  necessary  or  desirable,  but  a  man  should  never  so  speak 
or  behave  out  of  the  pulpit  as  would  make  it  impossible 
for  his  companions  to  listen  to  his  preaching  with  respect. 
He  must  not  undermine  his  own  authority  as  God's  mes- 
senger. An  ungracious  manner  also  is  an  offence  in  the 
preacher  of  the  grace  of  God.  One  hears  of  preachers  to 
whom  the  distance  of  the  pew  from  the  pulpit  lends 
enchantment,  and  whose  spell  fails  on  closer  acquaintance. 
A  hot  temper  or  an  overbearing  manner  bars  the  way  to 
the  entrance  of  the  message,  however  eloquently  delivered. 
The  preacher  in  the  pulpit  and  the  man  out  of  it  should 
always  present  a  harmonious  unity.  The  last  fault  which 
need  now  be  mentioned  is  the  very  opposite  of  any  of  these. 
The  preacher  may  invest  himself  with  an  exaggerated 
dignity  in  the  pulpit  where  even  it  is  ridiculous,  and  then 
he  may  retain  his  pulpit  manner  out  of  it,  and  so  make 
himself  still  more  ridiculous.  The  consecrated  natural 
human  personality  is  best  both  for  the  pulpit  and  out  of  it.^ 

1  He  12i». 

^  On  this  subject  very  helpful  counsel  can  be  found  in  Dr.  Oswald  Dykes' 
The  Chriitian  Minister  and  his  Duties,  pp.  55-56.  As  regards  ministerial 
manners  he  quotes  a  Frenchman,  Vinet,  and  a  German,  Schweizer.  "II 
faut,"  says  Vinet,  "sinon  qu'on  le  reconnaisse  pasteur,  du  moins  qu'on  ne 
s'dtonne  pas  d'apprendre  qu'il  est  pasteur."  (Even  if  one  does  not  recognise 
him  as  a  minister,  at  least  one  ought  not  to  be  surprised  on  learning  that  he 
is  a  minister.)  "Man  nimmt  das  Amt," says  Schweizer,  " nich  iiberall  hin 
mit  sich  sondem  nur  das  Bewusstsein  in  anderen  Stunden  vor  denen,  mit 
welchen  man  jetzt  gesellig  frei  umgeht,  amtliuh  aufzutreten."  (One  does 
not  take  the  oflBce  about  with  one  everywhere,  but  only  the  consciousness  of 
appearing  at  other  times  in  that  office  before  those  with  whom  one  now  has 


314  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

4.  These  may  seem  so  trivial  matters  as  scarcely  to 
be  worth  mentioning;  but  the  holy  place  of  a  man's 
character,  and  the  holy  of  holies  of  his  life  in  God  can  be 
approached  by  others  only  through  the  outer  court  of  his 
ordinary  manner  and  behaviour.  It  is  true  that  some 
preachers  have  avoided  these  occasions  of  offence  by 
isolating  themselves  from  their  fellow-men ;  but  the  writer 
ventures  to  think  that  whatever  may  be  allowable  for  the 
genius,  for  the  ordinary  man  who  wants  to  be  as  good  a 
preacher  as  he  can,  familiar  intercourse  and  intimate 
communion  with  his  fellow-men  is  a  necessary  condition 
of  his  own  fullest  personal  development.  We  must  rid 
ourselves  of  the  Koman  Catholic  idea  of  the  saint,  and 
must  assert  the  Protestant  position  that  it  is  in  the 
common  life  of  men  that  saintliness  is  both  won  and 
shown.  To  walk  with  Jesus  among  men  in  close 
companionship  with  them,  and  to  show  them  what  He 
is  through  likeness  to  Him — that  is  the  way  of  saintship. 
To  love  men,  and  in  love  to  sympathise  with  them,  and 
serve  them — that  is  the  way  the  Master  went,  and 
that  is  the  way  the  servant  should  still  tread.  To  be 
with  Jesus  and  so  like  Jesus — this  is  the  Christian 
experience  and  character,  which  may  claim  to  be  fulfilling 
the  ideal  of  saintship.  Scholar,  sage,  seer,  saint — this 
must  the  personality  be  becoming  through  which  the 
truth  is  preached.^ 

free  social  intercourse.)  (Quoted  pp.  61-62.)  The  second  lecture  in  Dr. 
Jowett's  The  Preacher:  His  Life  and  Work,  deals  with  the  perils  of  the 
preacher,  religious  as  well  as  moral  (pp.  87-69). 

^  Although  the  Protestant  ideal  of  saintliness  differs  from  the  Eoman 
Catholic,  yet  the  classic  books  of  devotion,  whether  Protestant  or  Roman 
Catholic,  still  claim  devout  study,  e.g.  Augustioie's  Confessions,  the  Irnitatio 
Christi,  the  Theologia  Germanica,  Pascal's  Thoughts,  Law's  Serious  Call, 
Taylor's  Holy  Living,  Baxter's  Saints'  Best,  Rutherford's  Letters,  Bunyan's 
Grace  Abounding.  The  writer  ventures  to  add  his  own  deep  conviction 
that  there  is  a  genuinely  Christian  asceticism,  which  the  ministry  in  the 
Protestant  Churches  would  gain  much  by  adopting.  There  are  few  ministers 
who  now  use  intoxicating  liquors  ;  but  is  not  smoking  often  indulged  in  far 
beyond  the  bounds  of  Christian  temperance  ?  Does  not  golf  or  some  other 
amusement  claim  more  time  than  health  really  demands  ?  Without  assert- 
ing a  double  morality,  one  for  clergy  and  one  for  laity,  we  may  ask: 


PEEACHEE  AS  SCHOLAE,  SEEE,  SAGE,  SAINT   315 

should  not  the  man  who  preaches  the  Christian  ideal  of  self-denial  and 
self-sacrifice,  feel  nnder  a  sacred  obligation  to  be  in  all  his  works  and  ways 
a  coDsiiicaous  example  of  what  he  preaches,  especially  as  his  vocation  places 
him  in  circumstances  in  which  detachment  from  the  world  is  more  practi- 
cable for  him  than  it  is  for  most  of  his  fiock  following  their  earthly  calling? 
There  need  be  no  morbidness  or  artificiality,  but  freeness  and  fulness  of  life 
in  taking  up  the  Cross  and  following  Christ,  whose  meat  it  was  to  do  the 
Father's  will  (Jn  4^),  and  who  was  straitened  tiU  His  Baptism  of  self- 
surrender  in  death  was  accomplished.     (Lk  12'°.) 


CHAPTER   III. 

THE  PREACHER  AS  PRIEST,  TEACHER, 
PASTOR  AND  EVANGELIST. 

We  have  considered  the  truth  which  is  to  be  preached, 
and  the  personality  through  which  it  is  to  be  preached ; 
the  end  of  preaching  is  the  eternal  life  of  the  hearers, 
and  we  must  now  ask  ourselves  in  what  ways  does  the 
preacher  through  his  personality  so  convey  the  truth  to 
his  hearers  that  the  eternal  life  will  begin  and  grow  in 
them.  In  so  far  as  the  truth  he  preaches  is  the  common 
good  of  his  hearers  already,  and  he  as  their  representative 
confesses,  and  in  confessing  confirms  the  truth,  religious 
and  moral,  which  he  and  they  together  hold,  he  may  be 
called  their  priest,  and  his  sermon  is  an  act  of  common 
worship.  In  so  far,  however,  as  they  do  not  know  the 
truth,  or  know  it  so  imperfectly  that  they  still  need  to 
learn  from  him  what  he  knows  as  they  do  not,  he  is  their 
teacher,  and  his  sermon  is  his  instruction  of  them.  But 
the  hearers  in  any  congregation  vary  in  experience, 
character,  stage  of  moral  and  religious  development,  and 
thus  the  common  truth  needs  to  be  individually  applied 
so  as  to  meet  the  case  of  each ;  in  this  individual  care  the 
preacher  is  pastor,  and  the  sermon  is  one  of  the  means 
to  be  employed  in  "  the  cure  of  souls."  Within  the 
Christian  Church  and  still  more  beyond  its  borders  are 
those  who  have  not  begun  the  eternal  life ;  and  the 
preacher  must  aim  at  their  conversion  from  sin  to  God 
by  presenting  to  them  the  Gospel  of  grace ;  he  must  be 
the  evangelist ;  and  his  sermon  by  the  Spirit's  operation 
must  seek  to  be  regenerative. 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR   AND   EVANGELIST      317 


1.  A  contrast  is  often  made  between  Worship  and  the 
Sermon  in  order  to  exalt  the  one  and  depreciate  the  other ; 
and  it  is  therefore  necessary  to  deal  first  of  all  with  the 
function  of  the  preacher  as  the  leader  of  the  worship  of 
the  congregation.  If  we  may  use  the  term  prophet  to 
describe  the  preacher  as  he  speaks  for  God  to  men,  we 
may  also  use  the  term  priest  to  describe  him  when  he 
speaks  to  God  for  men.  No  sacerdotal  pretensions  of 
exclusive  meditation  between  God  and  man  are  made  in 
either  case ;  but  it  is  quite  consistent  with  the  Evangelical 
Protestant  principles,  while  recognising  the  High  priest- 
hood of  Christ  and  the  priesthood  of  all  believers,  to  lay 
stress  on  the  mediation  of  the  minister  both  in  the  name 
of  God  and  on  the  behalf  of  men.  But  when  we  speak 
of  the  priesthood  of  the  preacher  we  do  not  think  merely 
of  his  conduct  of  the  prayer  and  the  praise  of  the 
congregation,  for  the  preaching  is  also  a  priestly  act :  it  is 
no  less  a  part  of  the  worship  of  the  congregation.  This 
is  a  view  of  it  which  is  generally  neglected  and  yet  a  view 
which  is  of  the  utmost  importance,  if  the  sermon  is  to  be 
rightly  conceived  and  worthily  esteemed.  The  preacher 
not  only  speaks  to  the  people  but  for  the  people ;  the 
sermon  is  no  less  a  collective  act  through  the  representative 
of  the  community  than  are  the  prayer  and  the  praise ;  and 
as  the  congregation  participates  in  the  one,  it  should  no 
less  in  the  other.  Not  only  theory  but  practice  is  involved 
in  this  view  of  preaching. 

2.  The  sermon  has  two  aspects ;  it  is  a  declaration 
either  of  divine  truth  and  gi-ace,  or  of  human  duty.  It 
is  in  the  first  aspect  not  merely  doctrine,  but  doctrine 
presented  with  gratitude  and  adoration ;  it  is  in  the  second 
aspect  not  merely  precept,  but  precept  expressive  of 
aspiration  and  obedience.  Its  Christian  character  is 
preserved  only  if  it  is  not  merely  a  statement  of  opinion 
about  belief  or  life,  but  if  it  is  quickened  by  emotion,  and 
strengthened   by  purpose.     As   communication    of    divine 


318  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

truth  and  grace  it  involves  in  the  speaker  and  hearers 
alike  praise,  as  apprehension  of  human  duty,  prayer. 
Who  can  preach  or  hear  what  God  is  and  does  without 
blessing  the  Lord  ?  Who  can  bid  or  be  bidden  to  be 
holy  without  seeking  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  ?  Thus  the 
sermon  does  not  lie  outside  of  the  worship ;  but  it  is 
worship  of  God  so  to  declare  His  goodness  as  to  be  filled 
with  praise,  and  so  to  aspire  to  goodness,  as  to  be  fervent  in 
prayer  for  the  sufficiency  of  His  grace !  If  the  sermon  is 
not  worchipful,  and  is  in  contrast  with,  and  not  a  com- 
pletion of  the  worship  of  prayer  and  praise,  it  has  failed 
to  be  what  Christian  preaching  ought  to  be.  Man's 
insufficiency  without  God,  and  man's  sufficiency  in  God — 
should  be  the  dxjminant  note  in  all  preaching  whether 
regarding  faith  or  duty ;  and  that  note  is  not  and  cannot 
be  anything  else  than  the  praise  of  God's  grace,  and  the 
prayer  of  man's  faith.  Not  only  would  the  services  of  the 
Church  by  the  constant  recognition  of  this  ideal  by 
preacher  and  hearer  alike  gain  harmonious  unity ;  but 
the  sermon  especially  would  gain  in  devout  and  worshipful 
character.^ 

3,  As  regards  the  preacher,  this  view  of  the  sermon 
would  correct  the  excessive  subjectivity  from  which  the 
pulpit  so  often  suffers.  The  pulpit  is  not  the  preacher's 
confessional  nor  his  platform.  It  is  not  his  own  opinions 
and  counsels  which  he  is  offering  to  men.  The  pulpit 
belongs  to  the  Church ;  here  is  to  be  heard  the  voice  of 
the  Christian  community.  The  preacher  is  the  representa- 
tive of  the  faith  the  Church  holds,  and  the  life  that  it 
would  attain.  Accordingly  the  preacher  is  not  primarily 
teacher  or  master,  telling  the  congregation  what  he  believes 
and  wants  them  to  believe,  how  he  thinks  of  their  duty, 
and  wishes  them  to  do  it.  This  lording  it  over  God's 
heritage  2  is  only  too  common  an  offence  in  the  pulpit. 
The  correction  of  it  is  the  constant  recognition  that 
preacher  and  hearers   alike  possess  a  common  gift  from 

^  On  this  subject  see  Forsyth's  Positive  Preaching,  pp.  97-99. 
•  1  P  i». 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND   EVANGELIST      319 

God  in  the  revelation  and  redemption  in  Christ  Jesus,  and 
that  that  gift,  whether  conceived  rehgiously  as  what  God 
has  done  or  morally  as  what  man  may  become,  is  ever 
jointly  in  gratitude  and  aspiration  to  be  presented  as  a 
living  sacrifice  on  the  altar  of  the  worship  of  God.  It  is 
something  much  larger  and  more  abiding  than  the 
preacher's  own  changing  opinions,  or  his  varying  moods ; 
and  what  he  must  beware  of  is  merely  preaching  himself, 
his  Christian  experience  and  Christian  character,  instead 
of  preaching  the  truth  and  grace  God  has  given,  and  the 
duty  and  destiny  to  which  God  calls  the  Church  of  Christ. 
The  preacher's  individual  peculiarities  and  personal  prefer- 
ences are  out  of  place  in  this  objective  testimony  of  the 
whole  Church  of  Christ.  "We"  and  not  "I"  is  the 
proper  pronoun  for  the  pulpit. 

4.  This  seems  to  be  the  most  appropriate  connection, 
in  which  to  deal  with  the  conduct  of  worship  by  the 
preacher.  However  much  he  may  strive  for  objectivity 
in  his  sermon,  as  preaching  is  truth  through  personality, 
he  will  not  altogether  escape  subjectivity.  His  sermon 
would  lack  both  sincerity  and  intensity  did  he  not  throw 
himself  into  it.  But  this  inevitable  subjectivity  of  the 
sermon  should  be  corrected  by  the  objectivity  of  the 
worship.  Some  preachers  have  held  that  the  sermon 
should  dominate  the  worship,  that  the  hymns  and  lessons 
should  be  appropriate  to  the  subject  of  the  sermon,  and 
that  in  this  way  a  unity  of  impression  should  be  produced. 
That  there  should  be  unity  may  be  admitted ;  but  what 
should  be  aimed  at  is  a  comprehensive  and  not  an  exclusive' 
unity,  a  harmony  and  not  a  monotony.  It  seems  desirable 
that  the  hymn  before  the  sermon  should  prepare  the  minds 
and  hearts  of  the  congregation  for  it,  and  the  hymn  after 
the  sermon  should  in  song  continue  and  complete  the 
impression  it  has  made.  It  is  often  necessary  to  choose 
one  of  the  lessons  at  least  with  a  view  to  presenting  to  the 
attention  and  interest  of  the  hearers  either  the  passage 
from  which  the  text  is  taken,  or  a  passage  which  illuminates 
the  theme ;  this  practice  keeps  the  work  of  the  preacher 


320  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

in  due  subordination  to  the  Holy  Scriptures.  There  are 
occasions  when  it  is  desirable  that  both  lessons  should  be 
so  selected,  in  order  that  the  agreement  or  the  difference 
of  the  Old  and  the  New  Testament  on  the  truth  may  be 
clearly  presented.  But  with  these  qualifications  the 
principle  may  rather  be  affirmed,  that  the  sermon  should 
not  dominate  the  worship ;  but  that  in  prayer  and  praise 
and  reading  of  the  Scripture  any  narrowness  or  one-sided- 
ness  of  the  sermon  either  in  thought  or  feeling  may  be 
corrected.^  A  congregation  meets  in  many  varied  moods 
with  many  different  needs,  and  the  common  worship  should 
not  express  only  the  preacher's  mood,  and  satisfy  only  his 
needs.  A  preacher  is  of  a  melancholy  temperament,  or  he 
has  passed  through  some  painful  experiences ;  and  he  so 
indulges  his  own  feelings  that  the  shadow  of  his  gloom 
of  spirit  falls  over  the  whole  of  the  service  he  is  conduct- 
ing. This  is  altogether  wrong,  for  joyousness  and  hopeful- 
ness, courage  and  confidence — these  are  the  characteristically 
Christian  moods ;  and  these  should  for  the  most  part 
mark  public  worship.  Even  the  sad  and  the  suffering 
will  be  more  helped  by  a  service  which  is  cheerful  than 
by  one  that  is  gloomy.  It  is  true  that  they  must  feel 
that  the  cheerfulness  is  not  thoughtless,  nor  regardless  of 
the  grief  there  is  in  the  world,  and  in  their  own  hearts. 
The  worship  as  well  as  the  sermon  must  convey  the 
assurance  of  the  sympathy  and  succour  of  God  for  the 
distressed ;  but  it  is  indecent  for  the  preacher  in  his 
sermon,  even  still  more  in  his  conduct  of  the  worship,  to 
force  his  private  sorrows  on  public  notice.  The  leader  of 
worship  must  think  representatively,  must  feel  vicariously, 
must  act  collectively,  so  that  the  service  may  be  not  his 
own  individual  devotion,  but  the  sacrifice  of  praise  and 
prayer  of  the  whole  Christian  community. 

5.  The  previous  discussion  forces  on   our  attention  a 

*  Dr.  Dale  has  expressed  his  opinion  very  distinctly  on  the  choice  of 
hymns  to  the  same  effect.  He  even  goes  farther  than  the  writer  does,  and 
advises  contrast  as  well  as  agreement  in  thought  and  feeling  between  hymn 
and  sermon,  so  as  to  avoid  wearisome  monotony.  See  his  Nhie  Lectures  on 
Preaching,  pp.  277-279. 


PEIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND  EVANGELIST      321 

question  which  can  scarcely  be  passed  over  altogether.  At 
first  sight  it  would  appear  as  if  a  liturgy  would  best  meet 
the  demand  for  objectivity  in  the  conduct  of  worship ;  by 
the  use  of  a  liturgy  the  congregation  is  saved  fi'om  the 
subjectivity  of  the  preacher.  A  liturgy  maintains  the 
collective  and  the  continuous  consciousness  of  the  Christian 
Church ;  there  is  impressiveness  in  the  use  of  the  same 
words  in  worship  by  many  separate  congregations  and 
successive  generations  of  worshippers.  But  repetition 
tends  to  produce  formality,  and  to  repress  the  spontaneity 
of  the  devout  feelings ;  and,  just  as  the  language  of  a 
creed  gets  antiquated,  so  will  the  language  of  a  liturgy. 
Who  can  maintain  that  the  Church  of  England  litany 
always  does  express  the  religious  thought  and  feeling  of 
Christians  to-day  ?  Are  there  not  many  expressions  in  it 
which  suggest  a  view  of  man's  relation  to  God  which  we 
have  outgrown  ?  A  liturgy  would  need  constant  adapta- 
tion, local,  temporal  and  even  occasional,  to  make  it  a  true 
and  fit  expression  of  the  devotion  of  a  Christian  community. 
While  fully  recognising  the  dangers,  the  writer's  own  pre- 
ference is  for  free  prayer,  but  free  prayer  which  seeks  to 
correct  the  errors  which  may  result  from  it  by  first  of  all 
being  as  widely  objective  as  can  be,  so  as  to  express  as 
completely  as  possible  the  worship  of  the  whole  congrega- 
tion ;  and  secondly,  by  using  not  the  speech  of  the  street 
of  to-day,  but  the  language,  in  so  far  as  it  has  not  become 
antiquated,  in  which  believers  and  saints  in  many  genera- 
tions have  addressed  themselves  to  God.^ 

^  The  opinion  on  this  subject  of  Dr.  Dale  is  worth  quoting. 

"  Before  you  have  been  very  long  in  the  ministry  I  think  it  very  likely 
that  your  public  prayers  will  occasion  you  great  perplexity  and  humiliation. 
Your  courage  will,  perhaps,  fail  altogether,  and  you  -Nvill  begin  to  ask  whether 
your  people  would  tolerate  a  liturgy.  There  is  hardly  a  thoughtful  minister 
of  my  own  age,  among  my  personal  friends,  who  has  not  at  times  looked 
wistfully  in  that  direction.  Happily  the  traditions  and  instincts  of  our 
congregations  have  saved  us  from  the  mistake  into  which  our  weakness 
might  have  betrayed  us.  Reflection  and  experience  have  convinced  me 
that  it  would  be  hardly  possible  to  inflict  a  worse  injury  on  the  life  and 
power  of  our  Churches  than  to  permit  free,  extemporaneous  prayer  to  be 
excluded  from  our  services,  or  even  to  be  relegated  to  an  inferior  position.    We 


322  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

6.  To  return  from  this  justified,  because  necessary, 
digression,  we  may  now  consider  how  the  view  of  the 
sermon  as  an  act  of  common  worship  affects  the  hearers 
of  it.  If  they  will  regard  the  preacher  as  their  repre- 
sentative, as  offering  for  them  in  the  sermon  their  sacrifice 
of  gratitude  and  aspiration  to  God,  it  will  not  have  for 
them  the  opposite  defect  that  it  has  for  him.  If  his  danger 
is  excessive  subjectivity,  theirs  is  excessive  objectivity. 
They  will  not  describe  the  preaching  part  of  the  service 
as  hearing  a  man  talk,  in  contrast  with  the  other  parts  as 
worship ;  they  will    not   merely  admire    the    learning    or 

need  not  despair.  We,  too,  have  received  the  Holy  Ghost.  He  did  not 
forsake  the  Church  when  the  great  saints  of  former  ages  passed  away,  and 
if  we  rely  on  His  inspiration  and  devote  to  the  snbstanee,  the  spirit,  and 
the  form  of  this  part  of  the  service  the  thought  and  care  which  it  ought  to 
receive,  our  difficulties  will  soon  be  diminished,  and  perhaps  in  time  they 
will  disappear  altogether"  {op.  ciL,  pp.  263-264).  While  insisting  that 
"prayers  are  not  works  of  ait,  they  are  great  spiritual  acts,"  he  advises 
definite  preparation  for  the  prayer  as  for  the  sermon.  The  preacher  is  not 
to  think  of  himself  only  in  this  preparation,  but  of  the  congregation  and  the 
"materials  of  inexhaustible  variety  their  lives  present,  class  by  class,  and 
even  as  far  as  is  possible,  person  by  person "  ;  he  must  look  beyond  his 
congregation  to  the  Church  and  the  Kingdom.  Not  only  the  substance, 
but  even  the  form  of  the  prayer  may  be  thought  about  in  this  preparation. 
Having  summoned  Dr.  Dale  against  it,  it  is  only  fair  that  an  advocate  of 
the  use  of  a  liturgy  should  be  cited  to  state  his  case.  The  plea  of  an 
Anglican  might  be  set  aside  as  the  result  of  custom,  but  it  is  a  Presbyterian, 
the  Rev.  R.  C.  Gillie,  who  has  recently  expressed  a  growing  desire  among 
Free  Churchmen  in  England.  On  the  one  hand  he  admits  that  "spontane- 
ous utterance  is  the  ideal  best,"  and  on  the  other  that,  "the  only  valid 
reason  for  change  should  be  the  desire  for  a  deeper  and  more  widespread 
devotional  experience,"  not  imitativeness  or  even  fashion.  He  oflFers  three 
reasons  why  he  believes  that  "the  time  has  come  when  the  Free  Churches 
should  give  some  place  to  forms  of  prayer."  (1)  "There  may  be  forced  free 
prayer,"  when  "neither  the  mood  nor  the  impulse  nor  the  language  of  free 
prayer  is  present."  (2)  "People  have  indubitably  become  more  sensitive 
to  the  use  of  words " ;  ruts  of  phraseology  oflfend  ;  some  petitions  require 
very  careful  expression  ;  force  in  prayer  needs  to  be  sought,  and  offence 
shunned.  (3)  In  free  prayer,  "there  is  no  opportunity  for  audible 
response  from  the  listeners,"  and  so  the  congregation  is  excluded  from 
anything  but  silent  participation  except  in  the  hymns.  As  intercession 
should  be  as  inclusive  as  possible,  and  must  necessarily  deal  with  the  same 
subjects,  why  not  use  the  most  beautiful  forms  available  ?  He  also  makes 
a  plea  for  the  greater  use  of  the  fellowship  of  silence  in  worship.  (The  Free 
Church  Yem-  Book,  1916,  pp.  73-75.) 


PKIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR   AND   EVANGELIST      323 

eloquence  of  the  preacher,  or  in  the  contrary  case,  censure 
his  defects  of  thought  and  speech.  He  will  be  confessing 
what  they  believe  when  he  preaches  the  Gospel ;  he  will 
be  expressing  what  they  desire  to  be  when  he  presents  the 
Christian  ideal.  They  will  not  be  hearers  of  the  word 
only,  nor  even  doers  only  in  the  sense  of  trying  afterwards 
to  practise  the  doctrine  which  they  have  heard ;  they  will 
be  doers  even  as  they  hear;  their  gratitude  and  their 
aspiration  will  be  taken  up  into  the  preacher's  collective 
act  in  his  sermon ;  their  praise  and  their  prayer  will  make 
that  atmosphere  for  themselves  and  others,  which  is  as  the 
breathing  of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  the  souls  of  men.  The 
preacher  well  knows  when  he  is  preaching  not  only  to  the 
congregation,  but  for  it ;  when  his  hearers  are  not  only 
receptive  passively,  but  so  actively  that  he  feels  that  his 
preaching  is  not  his  own  solitary  act,  but  the  collective  act 
of  the  Christian  community  in  the  worship  of  God. 

7.  There  are  two  practical  consequences  from  this 
conception  of  the  sermon  which  may  be  mentioned.  (1) 
In  the  first  place,  that  the  sermon  may  be  the  collective  act 
of  the  congregation  the  preacher  must  see  to  it  that  he 
is  expressing  the  thoughts,  feelings,  wishes  which  he  has 
a  right  to  assume  as  common  to  himself  and  his  hearers. 
That  does  not  mean  that  he  will  never  impart  thoughts 
that  are  fresh,  or  arouse  feelings  hitherto  unstirred,  or 
quicken  resolves  that  are  new  in  any  of  his  congregation ; 
but  it  does  mean  that  he  will  ever  move  within  the  wide 
circle  of  the  Christian  revelation.  Such  authority  as  he 
has  is  as  an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  so  his  message 
must  be  within  the  bounds  of  the  Name,  in  which  his 
congregation  is  gathered  as  one.  If  a  man  has  another 
Gospel  to  preach,  let  him  preach  it  from  a  platform 
in  a  hall,  not  from  the  pulpit  of  a  church,  which  is 
dedicated  to  the  worship  of  Father,  Son  and  Holy  Spirit, 
one  God. 

(2)  In  the  second  place,  if  the  sermon  is  a  collective  act 
of  worship,  it  fulfils  its  end  if  those  who  hear  it  are  inspired 
by  it  to  worship,  the  worship  of  gratitude  and  devotion  as 


324  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

well  as  of  aspiration  and  obedience.  A  sermon  need  not 
always  be  practical,  in  the  narrow  sense  many  people  would 
assign ;  that  is,  it  need  not  always  enjoin  some  duty  to  be 
done.  Eeligion  is  not  less,  but  greater  than  morality. 
The  fruit  of  Christian  experience  is  Christian  character ; 
and  a  sermon  that  waters  the  roots  of  Christian  experience 
in  making  the  truth  and  grace  of  God  more  real  and 
sufficient,  even  if  it  does  not  bear  directly  on  Christian 
character,  is  not  unpractical.  If  men  go  away  adoring 
God,  the  preacher  has  not  failed  in  his  purposes 


II. 

1.  While  the  sermon  ought  to  be  an  act  of  worship,  in 
which  the  emotions  are  stirred  and  the  will  is  moved,  yet, 
as  speech  which  expresses  thought,  it  must  address  itself  to 
the  intelligence.  The  divine  revelation  has  been  made  as 
truth  which  can  be  understood,  and  it  is  the  function  of  the 
pulpit  to  interpret  that  revelation.  It  is  the  common  faith 
which  the  preacher  proclaims,  and  yet  that  common  faith 
is  but  partially  and  imperfectly  understood  by  many  who 
confess  it ;  and  he  must  accordingly  be  their  teacher.  There 
was  for  a  generation  a  strong  prejudice  in  many  Churches 
against  the  teaching  function  of  the  pulpit.  Doctrinal 
sermons  were  not  at  all  popular ;  congregations  desired 
poetical,  emotional  or  practical  preaching. 

(1)  The  revolt  for  a  time  against  doctrinal  preaching  is 
intelligible,  for  two  reasons.  In  the  first  place,  Christian 
doctrine  had  come  to  be  expressed  in  stereotyped  phrase- 
ology, which,  full  of  meaning  once,  had  lost  all  the  meaning 
it  ever  had  ;  and  yet  many  doctrinal  preachers  insisted  on 
repeating  the  same  old  phrases.  The  repetition  of  these 
phrases  showed  that  for  the  preachers  themselves  the 
realities  which  had  once  been  expressed  by  them  had 
become  abstractions,  uninteresting  and  ineffective  for  living 
minds.  In  the  second  place,  the  intellectual  changes  of  last 
century  necessitated  a  fresh  statement  of  the  Gospel,  in 


PRIEST,  TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND  EVANGELIST      325 

language  which  would  be  more  intelligible  to  the  hearers  ; 
and  yet  some  preachers  believed  themselves  to  be  proving 
their  fidelity  to  the  Gospel  when,  through  indolence  or 
timidity,  they  insisted  on  repeating  the  old  phrases, 

(2)  While  there  was  an  absence  from  many  pulpits 
of  informed  and  competent  teaching,  the  profoundest 
problems  of  faith  and  duty  were  being  discussed  often  most 
superficially  and  without  adequate  knowledge  in  reviews, 
magazines  and  the  daily  press.  Young  men  and  women 
have  passed  from  evangelical  Churches  to  Agnosticism  on 
the  one  hand,  or  High  Anglicanism  or  even  Eoman 
Catholicism  on  the  other.  The  readiness  with  which  new 
theological  ventures  have  been  accepted  shows  how  many 
were  not  receiving  the  teaching  that  their  education  and 
the  intellectual  interests  it  had  awakened  craved.  There 
is  to-day  both  a  desire  and  an  opportunity  for  teaching  in 
the  pulpit.  The  sermon  need  not  be  less  charged  with 
religious  feeling,  nor  less  directed  to  a  moral  end,  because 
the  intellectual  demands  of  the  hearers  are  being  adequately 
and  efficiently  met.  In  dealing  in  the  previous  chapter 
with  the  preacher  as  sage,  some  indication  was  given  regard- 
ing the  material  on  which  an  enlightened  judgment  needs 
to  be  exercised.  Modern  science  and  philosophy,  history 
and  criticism,  the  practical  problems  of  the  age,  all  make 
demands  on  the  preacher  that  he  shall  give  his  hearers  the 
guidance  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.  Doctrinal  preach- 
ing must  not  repeat  the  mistakes  of  the  past  in  the  use  of 
abstract  terms,  in  the  dogmatic  tone,  in  the  impression  of 
remoteness  from  living  interests  ;  but,  using  the  language 
of  to-day  for  the  life  of  to-day,  never  could  i^  expect  a 
warmer  welcome.* 

^  The  testimony  of  the  pew  may  be  added.  Georst  Wharton  Pepper,  the 
first  layman  who  has  been  asked  to  deliver  tlie  Yale  Lectures  on  Preaching, 
devotes  one  lecture  to  this  subject.  "As  far  a»  his  own  development  is 
concerned,  the  preacher  will  do  well  to  remerabei  that  teaching  is  the  basis 
of  all  good  preaching.  It  has  been  said  to  Oe  the  hidden  or  revealed 
foundation  of  all  inspiration.  But  preaching  is  teaching  and  something 
more ;  for  the  preacher  should  approach  his  hearers  not  as  intelligences  but 
as  men.     Truth  can  never  be  stated  wholly  in  terms  of  the  intellect,  for  the 


326  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

2.  That  doctrinal  preaching  may  be  as  effective  as 
possible,  it  is  desirable  that  the  preacher  should  have  some 
knowledge  of  the  methods  and  principles  of  teaching,  the 
ways  in  which  knowledge,  truth,  wisdom  may  be  conveyed 
most  easily  and  .  thoroughly  from  one  mind  to  another. 
Attention  depends  on  interest,  and  interest  depends  on 
character  and  experience ;  but  the  interests  of  all  the 
members  of  a  church  are  not  the  same,  and  thus  the 
preacher  has  to  discover  how  to  command  the  widest 
attention  by  appealing  to  as  varied  interests  as  he  can. 
Again,  few  persons  can  maintain  their  attention  very  long, 
unless  their  interest  is  renewed  from  time  to  time  ;  and  so 
the  preacher  must  change  the  method  of  argument  and  the 
motive  of  appeal.  As  the  unknown  hitherto  will  be  under- 
stood and  remembered  only  as  it  can  be  associated  with 
what  is  already  familiar  (the  principle  of  apperception),  the 
preacher  must  ever  be  on  the  outlook  for  the  points  of 
contact  between  himself  and  his  hearers.  Jesus  associated 
the  new  truths  of  the  Kingdom  of  heaven  with  the  old 
facts  of  nature  and  man.^  It  would  be  going  beyond  the 
present  purpose  to  attempt  even  an  outline  of  modern 
educational  theory ;  but  if  in  the  sermon  the  teaching 
element  is  to  be  as  effective  as  the  present  intellectual 
needs  of  many  congregations  demand,  then  it  is  certain 
that  the  preacher  will  need  to  qualify  himself  for  his  task 

mind  is  a  lesser  thing  than  the  truth  which  it  strives  to  comprehend.  But 
the  teaching  method  should  always  be  at  the  preacher's  disposal,  and  his 
presentation  of  truth  should  be  systematic  and  thorough.  It  is  a  good  thiug 
to  train  one's  self  to  teach  the  lesson  that  is  needed,  whether  or  not  it  is  the 
one  in  which  the  teacher  takes  the  greatest  interest.  Especially  in  the  case 
of  the  minister  who  always  preaches  to  the  same  congi-egation,  it  is  of  great 
importance  to  present  Christian  teaching  in  ita  symmetry.  It  is  easy  to 
distort  truth  by  a  failure  to  preserve  just  emphasis  and  proper  perspective. 
I  wish  that  the  observance  of  the  Christian  year  were  less  exclusively  the 
habit  of  a  few  communions.  ...  I  am  not  a  gi'eat  believer  in  announced 
courses  of  sermons  on  related  topics.  They  are  apt  to  be  as  dull,  for  example, 
as  a  course  of  lectures  on  preaching.  But  the  preacher  will  do  well  to  map 
out  for  his  own  guidance  the  field  which  it  is  his  duty  to  cover  in  the  course 
of  a  year,  although  his  plan  must  be  kept  flexible  and  subject  to  modification 
at  the  call  of  opportunity  "  {A  Voice  from  the  Crowd,  pp.  110-111). 
1  Mt  13«^ 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND   EVANGELIST      327 

by  as  wide  and  thorough  a  knowledge  as  he  can  of  the 
principles  and  the  methods  of  teaching.^ 

3.  Although  we  are  primarily  concerned  with  the 
sermon  in  the  pulpit,  yet  it  is  not  irrelevant  to  the 
present  subject  of  discussion  to  call  attention  to  the  other 
tasks  as  teacher  which  have  a  claim  on  the  preacher.  He 
is  to  be  a  doctor  doctorum,  a  teacher  of  teachers.  One  of 
the  alarming  symptoms  of  church  conditions  to-day  is  the 
decrease  in  the  number  of  Sunday-school  scholars.  In 
the  public  school  the  methods  of  instruction  are  so  much 
improved,  that  if  the  youth  of  the  land  are  to  be  retained 
in  the  Sunday  schools  a  corresponding  improvement  must 
be  secured  ;  and  all  the  efforts  which  are  being  made  in 
this  direction  will  be  futile  unless  there  is  given  to  them 
not  only  the  cordial,  but  even  the  instructed  and  intelligent 
support  of  the  ministry;  and  how  can  a  minister  direct 
such  educational  effort  unless  he  has  an  interest  in,  and  a 
competence  for  it  ?  That  he  should  be  willing  and  able  to 
train  his  teachers  for  teaching  according  to  the  improved 

^  In  this  connection  mention  may  be  made  of  the  movement  to  improve 
on  the  basis  of  recent  psychological  science  and  pedagogic  method  the 
teaching  in  the  Sunday  schools,  from  which  the  preacher  can  learn  a  great 
deal.  A  few  books  may  be  suggested  as  useful  for  this  end  :  Welton, 
Princijyles  and  Methods  of  Teaching  ;  William  James,  Talks  to  Teachers  on 
Psychology,  and  to  Students  on  some  of  Life's  Ideals  ;  John  Adams,  Exposi- 
timi  and  Illustratio^i  in  Teaching  ;  Primer  on  Teaching  ;  The  New  Teaching, 
edited  by  John  Adams ;  Patterson  du  Bois,  Point  of  Contact  in  Teaching ; 
Natural  Way  of  Moral  Training.  A  few  sentences  on  only  one  of  the 
subjects  mentioned  need  be  added  to  show  what  kind  of  help  the  study 
recommended  can  offer.  "  Voluntary  attention,"  says  James,  "is  an  essen- 
tially instantaneous  affair.  You  can  claim  it,  for  your  purpose  in  the 
schoolroom,  by  commanding  it  in  loud,  imperious  tones  ;  and  you  can  easily 
get  it  in  this  way.  But  unless  the  subject  to  which  you  thus  recall  their 
attention  has  inherent  power  to  interest  the  pupils,  you  will  have  got  it  for 
only  a  brief  moment ;  and  their  minds  will  soon  be  wandering  again.  To 
keep  them  where  you  have  called  them,  you  must  make  the  subject  too 
interesting  for  them  to  wander  again.  And  for  that  there  is  one  prescrip- 
tion ;  but  the  prescription,  like  all  our  prescriptions,  is  abstract,  and,  to  get 
practical  results  from  it,  you  must  couple  it  with  mother-wit.  The 
prescription  is  that  the  subject  mnst  be  inade  to  show  new  aspects  of  itself;  to 
prompt  new  questiotis;  in  a  word,  to  change"  (Talks  to  Teachers,  p.  103). 
This  advice  is  given  to  teachers  ;  but  it  still  more  applies  to  preachers,  as 
they  cannot  order,  but  must  win,  attention. 


328  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

methods  may  seem  to  many  a  distraction  of  his  efiforts 
from  his  main  business,  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel. 
Even  if  it  were,  the  present  situation  demands  that,  if 
necessary,  such  a  sacrifice  must  be  made,  so  that  the  young 
may  be  held  for,  and  not  lost  to,  the  Church.  But  it  is 
no  such  diversion  of  his  mind  from  what  should  occupy  it, 
for  the  writer  is  fully  persuaded  that  a  man  will  be  more 
effective  as  a  teacher  in  the  pulpit  if  he  has  undergone  this 
discipline.  He  who  can  interest  children  will  know  how 
to  interest  adults. 

4.  The  contention  that  the  writer  ventures  to  advance 
contrary  to  common  opinion  is  that  teaching  should  have 
a  larger  place  in  preaching  than  it  has  hitherto  had,  and 
that  this  teaching,  which  necessarily  in  many  accidents  is 
different  from  that  of  the  school,  should  be  guided  by  the 
new  recognised  educational  theory.  It  is  not  only  possible, 
but  even  probable,  that  such  preaching  will  not  be  widely 
popular,  as  very  many  persons  are  averse  to  any  exercise 
of  their  minds  even  in  listening  to  a  sermon  ;  and  prefer 
vivid  pictures  for  their  imagination,  vigorous  excitement  of 
their  emotions,  a  reproduction  in  the  pulpit  of  the  narrow 
views  and  the  shallow  feelings  of  the  crowd.  Such  preach- 
ing will  deserve  to  be  unpopular,  if  it  is  academic,  if  it 
reproduces  the  terminology  of  science,  philosophy,  criticism 
or  theology,  if  the  preacher  lectures  as  professors  are 
supposed  to  lecture,  although  a  good  many  of  them  would 
pity  themselves  if  they  did.  It  must  be  insisted  that  the 
sermon  remains  the  sermon,  the  conveyance  of  truth 
through  the  whole  personality,  and  not  through  the 
abstractions  of  the  intellect  alone.  It  must  be  required  of 
the  preacher  that  while  he  does  not  quite  use  the  language 
of  the  man-in-tJie-street,  as  preaching,  even  if  it  be  conversa- 
tion, must  be  "  dignified  conversation,"  yet  he  shall  use 
words  that  the  man-in-the-street  can  understand,  language 
such  as  cultured  men  use  in  serious  converse  with  one 
another :  it  must  not  be  too  literary  even  as  it  must  not 
be  too  academic ;  it  must  remain  speech  simple,  clear, 
strong,  but  always  cultured. 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND  EVANGELIST      329 

5.  That  the  preacher  may  be  a  teacher,  there  must 
needs  be  some  system  in  his  choice  of  themes  and  texts. 
This  object  will  be  much  more  fully  discussed  in  the  last 
part  of  this  volume ;  but  meanwhile  only  the  general 
principle  may  be  affirmed.  Unless  a  man  has  a  very  com- 
prehensive mind,  and  a  very  sympathetic  heart,  it  is  not 
likely  that  the  whole  range  of  Christian  doctrine  and 
practice  will  equally  appeal  to  him ;  and  unless  he  deliber- 
ately resolves  not  to  be  guided  solely  by  his  own  prefer- 
ences as  regards  either  belief  or  duty,  but  to  declare  "  the 
whole  counsel  of  God,"  his  work  as  teacher  will  be  one- 
sided. The  writer  has  heard  of  an  ancient  divine  who  was 
so  much  under  the  spell  of  the  federal  theology,  that  he 
found  the  covenant  of  works  and  the  covenant  of  grace  in 
every  text  and  incident  on  which  he  preached :  and  of  a 
more  modern,  to  whom  the  universal  fatherhood  of  God 
came  as  so  great  a  surprise  and  relief,  that  for  the  rest  of 
his  ministry  he  preached  nothing  else.  Some  congregations 
might  be  alarmed  if  told  that  a  series  of  sermons  on  the 
great  Christian  doctrines,  or  on  the  chief  Christian  virtues, 
was  to  be  preached  to  them :  but  the  risk  would  be  worth 
incurring.  Let  not  the  series  be  too  long ;  let  it  deal 
only  with  matters  of  primary  importance,  let  each  sermon 
have  its  own  interest,  and  not  merely  as  one  in  a  series ; 
and  most  congregations  would  come  to  appreciate  the  effort. 
But  even  if  the  intention  to  preach  a  series  be  not  inti- 
mated, the  preacher  must  in  his  teaching  have  method,  so 
that  it  shall  be  adequate  to  the  truth. 

III. 

1.  Instruction  is  only  one  of  the  needs  represented  in 
a  Christian  congregation.  If  the  preacher  looking  from 
the  pulpit  on  the  faces  before  him  could  read  there  the 
life  history  of  each  person,  and  the  sorrows  or  joys,  fears 
or  hopes,  disappointments  or  aspirations,  woe  or  bliss 
which  each  may  be  experiencing,  he  would  surely  be  over- 
whelmed by  the  greatness  of  his  task.     How  can  he  so 


330  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

rightly  divide  the  word  of  truth  that  to  each  will  be  given 
in  due  season  his  own  portion  ?  ^  Can  he  find  even  in 
the  treasure-house  of  the  Scriptures  the  gift  which  each 
desires  and  expects  ?  ^  A  sermon  must  have  unity  and 
definiteness,  and  that  necessarily  involves  limitation.  It 
cannot  contain  explicitly  the  answer  to  all  the  questions 
which  the  hearers  in  their  needs  and  longings  are  address- 
ing to  the  preacher.  Must  he  then  resign  himself  to  the 
grievous  necessity  of  sending  away  many  of  his  congrega- 
tion dissatisfied  ?  Against  this  conclusion  may  be  set 
several  considerations.  In  the  first  flaee,  if  the  preacher 
knows  to  present  the  Gospel  of  the  grace  of  God  in  its 
fulness  and  freeness,  he  will  so  minister  to  the  universal 
needs  of  the  human  heart  that  even  individual  necessities 
will  be  relieved  in  the   sense  of   this   deepest   and  most 

1  2  Ti  2",  Lk  12^. 

"^  The  feeling  of  the  preacher  in  facing  a  congregation  in  time  of  war  has 
been  admirably  expressed  by  the  Rev.  Edward  Shillito  in  the  following 
poem  on  "Preaching  in  War-time"  : 

'*0n»  looks  at  me  with  distant  eyes 
As  though  far  hence  his  treasure  lies  : 
Another  spent  last  week  in  hell ; 
One  knows  to-day  that  she  must  dwell 
Alone  till  death  ;  and  there  are  some 
Waiting  for  cablegrams  to  come  : 
Before  another  Sabbath  ends 
That  soldier  takes  his  leave  of  friends ; 
This  is  the  last  time  he  will  take 
The  bread  and  wine  for  Jesus'  sake. 

When  bursting  shells  to  man  proclaim 
Death's  new  insatiable  name, — 
When  in  the  hazard  and  the  loss 
They  dimly  see  the  Eternal  Cross, — 
When  a  thousand  thousand  voices  cry, 
'  Prepare  to  meet  Him,  God  is  nigh  ! ' 
What  need  of  words  from  men  like  me, 
When  all  around  their  steps  is  He, 
The  God  who  draws  them  by  their  fears, 
The  God  who  wipes  away  their  tears  ? " 

Afutatis  mutandis,  the  situation  is  the  same  at  all  times  as  regards  human 
need,  sorrow,  care  and  fear,  although  war  may,  as  it  were,  focus  the  human 
tragedy. 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR   AND  EVANGELIST      331 

abiding  satisfaction.  Sometimes  the  very  best  a  preacher 
can  do  is  to  lead  the  individual  out  of  the  circle  of  his  own 
personal  interests  into  the  common  realm  of  the  soul's 
need  of  God.  In  the  second  place,  if  the  preacher  has  a 
sympathetic  personality,  even  if  his  sermon  does  not 
convey  an  individual  message  to  all  the  hearers,  the 
sorrowing  and  tempted  may  find  comfort  and  succour 
even  by  contact  with  him.  If  in  tone  he  can  interpret 
the  loving-kindness  and  tender  mercy  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  he  will  be  ministering  to  the  needs  of  men  even  if 
his  words  do  not  explicitly  convey  help.  It  may  be  possible 
for  one  who  gives  himself  to  preaching  as  the  work  he  can 
do  best,  and  who  has  either  no  time  or  no  taste  for  pastoral 
work,  by  width  of  sympathy  and  keenness  of  imagination, 
stimulated  by  a  study  of  literature  in  which  the  human 
heart  has  found  the  interpretation  of  genius,  to  acquire 
the  gift  of  dealing  wisely  and  tenderly  with  the  manifold 
needs  of  men.  But  this  is  possible  only  to  genius.  For 
the  ordinary  man  what  is  needed  is  pastoral  experience  and 
activity. 

2.  The  preacher,  who  is  not  a  genius,  must  know  his 
people  to  minister  to  them ;  he  must  have  been  much  in 
their  homes  in  order  to  get  close  to  their  hearts.  The 
man  who  in  the  interests  of  his  pulpit  neglects  his  pastoral 
duties,  unless  he  is  quite  exceptionally  gifted,  defeats  his 
own  end ;  for  it  is  in  the  intimacy  of  pastoral  visitation 
that  the  secrets  of  many  hearts  are  revealed  to  him ;  and 
he  acquires  not  only  the  knowledge  which  makes  his 
sermons  human,  but  also  develops  that  sympathetic 
personality,  the  value  of  which  for  the  preacher  has  already 
been  noted.  The  proposal  sometimes  made,  that  there 
should  be  greater  division  of  labour  in  the  Christian 
ministry,  so  that  one  man  shall  be  set  apart  for  preaching 
only  and  another  for  pastoral  work  only,  is  a  thorough 
mistake.  The  pastor's  influence  is  reinforced  by  the 
preacher's  authority,  and  the  message  of  the  pulpit  is  made 
more  effective  by  the  ministries  of  the  home.  Profundity 
of    thought,    intensity    of    emotion,    brilliance    of    style 


332  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

eloquence  of  delivery  are  all  precious  gifts  for  the  preacher ; 
but  they  are  surely  only  as  "  sounding  brass  or  a  clanging 
cymbal "  ^  if  he  is  not  in  intimate,  affectionate  and  sym- 
pathetic relation  with  those  to  whom  he  is  preaching. 
Men  of  very  moderate  ability  in  the  pulpit  have  exercised 
a  stronger  influence  than  men  of  far  more  abundant 
talents,  because  of  their  pastoral  fidelity.  The  man  who 
has  won  the  confidence,  gratitude  and  devotion  of  his  con- 
gregation by  his  varied  ministry  in  their  common  life  will, 
t/  when  he  preaches,  be  listened  to  with  a  respect  and  re- 
sponsiveness which  ability  alone  cannot  command.  It  is 
much  to  be  regretted  that  the  attention  given  to  a  com- 
paratively few  eminent  preachers,  who  can  gather  crowds 
wherever  they  go,  and  whose  doings  are  minutely  recorded 
in  the  "  religious  press,"  tends  to  foster  a  false  ambition  in 
many  young  ministers.  While  we  do  not  depreciate  the 
value  of  the  great  preachers  to  the  Christian  Church  and 
are  grateful  to  God  for  their  reputation  and  influence,  we 
must  not  overlook  the  importance  of  the  quiet  ministries  in 
the  obscurer  places,  where  the  influence,  if  more  restricted 
in  its  range,  is  in  many  cases  more  intensive  in  its 
character. 

3.  The  pastoral  duty  can  in  part  be  discharged  in  the 
pulpit.  The  preacher  who  knows  the  individual  needs  of 
his  hearers  will  be  able  to  adapt  his  preaching  to  those 
needs.  As  he  looks  around  him  and  sees  the  wistful  look 
of  those  who  have  come  from  the  house  of  mourning,  he 
will  be  better  able  to  speak  the  comfort  which  the  Christian 
hope  brings.  If  his  eyes  fall  on  the  youth  who  has  begun 
with  evil  companions  the  path  which  ends  in  ruin,  his 
warnings  will  have  an  urgency,  and  his  entreaties  an 
insistence,  which  if  sin  were  to  him  only  a  general  con- 
ception would  certainly  be  lacking. 

(1)  It  has  been  said  that  Christian  preaching  attracts 
women  rather  than  men,  and  that  the  pulpit  is  often 
effeminate,  and  not  virile.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that 
such  a  statement  may  be  an  unfavourable  judgment  of  the 

1  1  Co  13^ 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND  EVANGELIST      333 

manhood  which  is  not  attracted  and  a  favourable  judgment 
of  the  womanhood  which  is.  The  virility  which  the  pulpit 
is  blamed  for  lacking  may  be  a  self-sufficiency  and  self- 
assertiveness,  to  which  the  distinctively  Christian  spirit  is 
an  offence ;  and  may  need  abasement  in  humility  and 
obedience  before  it  can  develop  into  Christian  manhood. 
The  effeminacy  charged  against  the  pulpit  may  be  what 
the  tenderness  and  gentleness  of  Jesus  appear  to  those 
whose  spirit  is  not  fine  enough  in  quality  to  appreciate 
these  graces.^  But  in  so  far  as  there  is  any  justification 
for  such  a  charge,  it  is  a  challenge  to  the  pulpit  to  get  into 
closer  touch  with  the  manhood  of  the  Church.  In  ordinary 
pastoral  visitation  it  is  probable  that  the  minister  does 
come  into  more  immediate  and  intimate  contact  with  the 
women  than  the  men  of  the  Church ;  and,  as  his  life  apart 
from  these  duties  is  mostly  in  his  home,  it  is  not  impossible 
that  his  point  of  view  may  be  rather  that  of  the  woman  in 
the  home  than  of  the  man  in  the  world.^  Again  it  is 
likely  that  the  one  view  is  nearer  the  Christian  standpoint 
than  the  other ;  and  nevertheless  he  must  learn  to  know 
and  understand  both,  even  for  the  correction  of  what  may 
be  defective  in  either.  The  needs  and  aims,  cares  and 
difficulties  of  the  man  in  business,  whose  motive  in  what 
appear  his  hard  ways  may  be  not  so  much  to  gain  wealth, 
as  to  protect  from  the  world's  cruelty  the  wife  and  children 
who  are  his  most  precious  possession  and  most  sacred 
obligation,  need  to  be  understood,  that  justice  may  be  done 
to  all  the  good  in  them,  even  when  judgment  is  pronounced 
on  what  seems  evil  from  the  Christian  standpoint. 

(2)  But  here  again  lurks  a  danger.  The  minister  of  a 
suburban  church  may  so  adopt  the  partial  view  of  the 
social  problem  which  even  intelligent  business  men  are 
prone  to  take,  that  he  may  fail  to  reach  the  standpoint  of 
the  working  man.     The  preacher  must  not  take  sides  in 

'  Nietzsche's  attack  on  Christian  morala  as  servile  may  serve  as  an 
illustration. 

^  This  topic  has  heen  discussed  by  Hoyt  in  his  book,  Fital  Elements  in 
Preaching :  Lecture  VIII.  A  Mom's  Gospel. 


334  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

the  pulpit ;  but  he  must  know  both  sides  in  these  disputes 
which  divide  society,  and  he  must  so  preach  the  Christian 
ethics  that  the  business  man  and  the  working  man  alike 
may  feel  that  the  position  of  each  is  not  only  understood, 
but  judged  with  the  judgment  of  a  pastoral  solicitude, 

(3)  In  recent  years  the  social  problem  has  been  forced 
into  such  prominence  that  there  is  little  danger  of  its  not 
receiving  due  attention  in  the  pulpit.  The  peril  rather  is 
that  the  preacher  may  forget  that  in  spite  of  the  industrial 
revolution,  and  the  social  transformations  which  this 
involves,  in  its  deepest  experiences  humanity  remains  un- 
changed. Birth  and  death,  union  of  hearts  and  bereave- 
ment, the  joy  or  the  sorrow  of  motherhood,  the  care  or 
hope  of  fatherhood,  the  smiles  of  youth  and  the  sighs  of 
age,  all  always  abide.  And  the  Christian  Gospel  is  con- 
cerned with  the  cleansing  and  hallowing  of  the  whole  of 
this  common  life  of  man.  We  hear  of  courses  on  Questions 
of  the  Day ;  these  are  both  necessary  and  desirable.  But 
only  a  small  part  of  the  soul  of  man  is  concerned  with 
questions  of  the  day ;  there  are  questions  of  yesterday,  and 
to-day,  and  for  ever  which  are  the  same,  and  which  lie  far 
nearer  the  heart  of  the  life  of  man.  The  preacher  cannot 
afford  to  treat  these  common  and  constant  interests  of 
mankind  as  beneath  his  notice ;  for  the  character  and  spirit 
of  man  are  more  affected  by  these  than  by  the  questions  of 
the  day.  As  pastor^  then,  the  preacher  must,  himself 
living  the  vicarious  life  of  which  mention  has  already  been 
made,  and  so  able  to  make  his  own  the  varied  experience 
of  his  people,  make  his  preaching  of  the  Gospel  a  ministry 

^  Dr.  John  Watson  has  called  his  volume  on  preaching.  The  Cure  of 
Souls,  and  the  title  would  have  led  one  to  expect  that  he  would  devote 
himself  mainly,  if  not  solely,  to  this  side  of  the  preacher's  work  ;  but  he 
gives  only  one  chapter  to  the  JVork  of  a  Pastor.  Disappointing,  too,  is  his 
advocacy  of  the  proposal  which  has  already  been  condemned,  that  a  con- 
gregation should  have  two  ministers,  a  pastor  and  a  preacher.  Bad  for 
pastor  and  preacher  alike  is  the  one-sidedness  of  development  which  in 
support  of  that  proposal  he  seems  to  approve  with  somewhat  rhetorical 
exaggeration.  His  description  reads  almost  like  a  caricature  (p.  171).  A 
statement  worth  noting  in  regard  to  the  solicitude  of  the  ideal  pastor  for 
individual  souls  is  made  on  p.  173. 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND   EVANGELIST      335 

of  comfort,  hope,  encouragement,  warning,  pleading,  and  if 
need  be  judgment  as  well  as  mercy,  so  that  each  hearer 
will  be  made  to  feel  that  he,  just  as  he  is,  is  being  cared 
for  with  watchful,  wise  and  tender  love. 

4.  Living  is  after  all  the  best  instruction  about  life. 
Uocperientia  docet.  And  yet  we  must  not  ignore  the  service 
that  science  can  render.  Psychology  ^  will  never  by  itself 
make  a  pastor :  only  by  shepherding  can  a  man  become  a 
shepherd.  It  would  be  well  if  in  the  ministry  there  could 
be  an  apprenticeship,  as  there  used  to  be  in  most  trades. 
But  while  a  man  must  become  a  master  in  his  calling  by 
the  exercise  of  it,  the  study  of  psychology  can  be  useful  in 
making  familiar  with  the  workings  of  the  mind,  the  heart, 
and  the  will,  in  introducing  to  a  wider  circle  of  human 
experience  and  character  than  the  sphere  of  labour  of  most 

^  Dr.  Stalker  in  his  Cliristian  Psychology  advocates  the  direct  use  of 
psychology  as  well  as  ethics,  aud  other  subjects  which  the  preacher  has 
studied  in  the  pulpit  itself  (pp.  9-10).  How  necessary  psychology  is  to  the 
preacher  in  order  that  he  may  adapt  his  message  as  closely  as  can  be  to  the 
thought  and  life  of  to-day  has  been  shown  with  German  thoroughness  in 
Niebergall's  book,  Wie  predigen  wir  dem  modernen  MeriMhen  f  (How  shall 
we  preach  to  the  modern  man  ?)  In  the  first  part  he  makes  an  investigation 
into  motives  and  quietives.  In  the  second  part  he  discusses  man  from 
two  points  of  view,  psychological  and  ethnological  (Volkskundliches).  In 
the  last  part,  in  view  of  the  results  of  the  previous  discussion,  he  indicates 
what  the  message  for  to-day  should  be.  To  reproduce  his  discussion  in 
detail  would  defeat  the  very  purpose  for  which  attention  is  being  called  to 
his  work,  i.e.,  not  to  offer  results  which  the  preacher  can  appropriate  for 
himself  without  labour,  but  to  suggest  a  method  of  investigation  which  he 
should  follow  out  for  himself.  The  preacher  should  ask  himself  such 
questions  as  these :  Does  the  doctrine  of  the  Atonement  appeal  to  the 
modem  conscience  ?  If  not,  why  not  ?  Is  the  defect  in  the  doctrine  or  in 
the  conscience  ?  Does  the  preaching  of  heaven  or  hell  move  men  as  it  once 
did  ?  Who,  if  any,  can  still  be  reached  by  such  an  appeal  ?  It  is  not 
enough  that  the  preacher  is  sure  that  he  himself  has  the  truth.  He  must 
find  out  how  he  can  make  his  hearers  know  and  feel  that  that  which  is 
truth  for  him  is  truth  for  them,  making  not  merely  a  theoretical  demand  on 
their  minds,  but  mainly  a  practical  demand  on  their  wills.  This  is  one  of 
the  most  profitable  kinds  of  study  in  which  a  preacher  could  engage,  using  all 
helps,  such  as  Niebergall's  book,  within  his  reach,  but  pursuing  the  inquiry 
for  himself,  as  on  the  one  hand  no  man  should  simply  borrow  his  messa"e 
from  another,  and  on  the  other  hand  the  differences  of  audiences  are  so  great 
that  only  a  separate  study  of  each  can  secure  the  closeness  of  application 
desired. 


336  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

preachers  affords  them.  This  study  of  psychological  text- 
books may  be  usefully  supplemented  by  as  wide  an 
acquaintance  with  the  literature,  novel  or  drama,  which 
deals  with  human  life.  The  mere  scientific  jargon  of 
psychology  is  not  only  out  of  place  in  the  pulpit,  but  how- 
ever necessary  it  may  be,  has  even  a  repellent  effect  on 
the  student.  And  yet  exact  observation  and  accurate 
explanation  of  the  ways  of  the  soul  of  man  have  a  very 
great  value,  when  vitalised  by  experience.  Literature 
especially  is  essential  to  the  preacher's  equipment  as 
widening  his  sympathy,  making  keener  his  insight,  affording 
him  illustrations  of  the  subtle  and  secret,  wonderful  and 
enthralling  movements  of  the  inner  life  of  man.  But  this 
psychological  interest  must  never  be  allowed  to  become 
theoretical  or  aesthetic  only ;  it  must  ever  be  subordinated 
to  the  desire  and  purpose  to  bring  the  abounding  grace  of 
God  into  closest  touch  with  the  manifold  needs  of  men. 


IV. 

1.  The  sermon  has  been  described  as  the  confession  of 
the  common  faith  and  duty  of  the  Christian  community ; 
and  till  now  in  this  discussion  it  has  been  assumed  that 
the  preacher  is  addressing  himself  to  those  who  themselves 
accept  the  Gospel,  to  whom  he  is  to  give  a  fuller  knowledge 
and  a  deeper  understanding,  or  whose  manifold  needs  he  is 
to  meet  from  its  abounding  resources.  And  it  is  of  the 
utmost  importance  that  the  preacher  should  ever  regard 
himself  as  both  representative  and  servant  of  the  Christian 
community.  The  constant  recognition  of  his  dependence 
and  obligation  will  correct  the  defect  of  egotism  which  is 
a  danger  of  one  thrust  into  a  position  of  such  prominence 
and  importance.  But  as  the  Church  does  not  exist  for 
itself,  but  as  the  body  of  Christ,  through  which  He  may 
carry  on  His  work  in  the  world,  so  the  preacher  cannot 
limit  himself  to  the  Christian  community.  He  must  seek 
in  his  preaching  to  address  himself  to  those  who  are  as  yet 


PRIEST,  TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND  EVANGELIST      337 

without  and  not  within  the  Christian  fellowship :  he  must 
be  an  evangelist.  So  important  is  this  work,  and  so  often 
are  its  claims  overlooked,  that  it  is  necessary  to  deal  with 
it  more  fully. 

2.  There  are  pulpits  from  which  an  appeal  to  the 
unconverted  would  come  as  a  shock  to  the  respectable  and 
(must  we  not  even  add  ?)  self-righteous  congregation. 
There  are  preachers  who  assume  either  that  all  their 
hearers  have  been  converted,  or  that  such  an  experience  is 
only  for  those  whose  lives  have  been  notoriously  wicked. 
Not  a  genuine  insight  into  the  variety  of  religious 
experiences  prevents  their  calling  on  all  their  hearers  who 
have  not  had  this  experience  to  seek  for  it  ;  but  a  super- 
ficial assumption  that  as  God  is  the  father  of  all,  all,  unless 
the  too  manifestly  depraved,  may  be  addressed  as  His 
children.  At  the  opposite  extreme  are  the  preachers  who, 
having  themselves  had  a  distinct  experience  of  passing  out 
of  darkness  into  God's  marvellous  light,  address  the  whole 
of  every  congregation  as  still  needing  to  pass  through  such 
an  experience.  Some  with  a  little  more  discrimination  are 
careful  to  divide  their  hearers  into  the  saved  and  the  unsaved 
without  sufficiently  recognising  that  God  alone  can  so 
accurately  determine  the  spiritual  condition,  and  that  a 
man  himself,  although  moving  towards  the  light  out  of  the 
darkness,  may  have  no  assurance  that  the  change  is  taking 
place.  There  are  Christians  who  have  not  yet  gained  the 
assurance  of  faith  even.  While  it  must  be  maintained  that 
in  every  congregation  there  are  likely  to  be  those,  few  or 
many,  who  have  not  yet  entered  on  the  Christian  life,  and 
that  therefore  the  call  of  the  Gospel  to  penitence  and  faith 
is  never  unseasonable  or  out  of  place  in  the  pulpit ;  yet  he 
who  would  do  the  work  of  the  evangelist  must  not  make 
dogmatic  assumptions  such  as  that  all  are  either  saved  or 
unsaved,  but  must  have  a  psychological  understanding  of 
the  varied  types  and  the  varying  phases  of  the  Christian 
experience,  so  that  he  shall  so  present  the  Gospel  that  it 
will  reach  each  hearer  just  with  the  appeal  his  condition 
may  demand. 


338  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

3.  It  will  not  be  out  of  place  at  this  stage  of  the 
discussion  to  give  some  fuller  notice  of  what  has  been 
done  by  psychology  in  recent  years  to  help  the  Christian 
preacher  both  as  pastor  and  as  evangelist.^  While  James' 
^Varieties  of  Beligious  Experience  has  the  defect  that  it 
throws  into  undue  prominence  abnormal  psychical  accom- 
paniments of  intense  religious  experiences,  it  has  probably 
done  more  than  any  other  single  book  to  show  how  much 
this  science  has  to  teach  the  Christian  minister.  (1)  One 
conclusion  from  these  investigations  stands  out  most  dis- 
tinctly ;  and  it  is  this,  that  the  religious  life,  the  Christian 
experience,  is  far  too  varied,  too  much  affected  by  natural 
temperament,  educational  and  environmental  influences,  to 
be  forced  into  one  or  two  moulds.  And  what  Christian 
preaching,  especially  what  may  be  called  evangelistic,  has 
most  suffered  from  is  just  the  failure  to  recognise  this 
variety  and  this  dependence.  A  few  texts  of  Scripture, 
imperfectly  understood,  such  as  Jesus'  saying  about  the 
new  birth,  have  been  used  as  defining  what  experience 
must  be  without  the  inquiry  whether  all  experience  is 
actually  what  it  is  assumed  it  must  be. 

(2)  Again  the  difference  necessarily  made  by  age  has 
too  often  been  ignored ;  and  childhood  and  youth  have 
been  supposed  capable  of  the  same  experience  as  mature 
years.  That  children  can  be,  and  so  ought  to  be,  converted 
in  the  same  way  as  grown  men,  has  been  a  common 
assumption  even  in  the  Sunday  school.  That  there  may 
be  a  gradual  spiritual  and  moral  development  without  any 
crisis  such  as  conversion,  has  been  generally  ignored  by 
those  most  zealous  to  do  the  work  of  the  evangelist. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  value  of  a  definite  decision  for 
Christ,  in  confirmation  of  the  previous  life  of  depen- 
dence on  Christian  influences,  when  adolescence  has  been 
reached,  has  not   been   as   generally  recognised   by  those 

'  Among  recent  books  may  be  mentioned  James'  Varieties  of  BeHgious 
Experience ;  Starbuck's  The  Psychology  of  Religion  ;  Granger's  The  Soul  of 
a  Christian  ;  Cuttin's  The  Psychological  PheTwmena  of  Christianity  ;  Steven's 
The  Psychology  of  the  Christian  Soul ;  Stalker's  Christian  Psychology ; 
Davenport's  Primitive  Traits  in  Meligio^is  Revivals. 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND   EVANGELIST      339 

who  lay  stress  on  the  importance  of  such  gi-adual  develop- 
ment.^ 

(3)  That  the  excitement  of  a  big  meeting,  when  what 
has  been  called  the  "  mob  consciousness "  emerges,  is 
not  the  best  psychical  condition  to  secure  a  conversion 
which  will  be  thorough  and  lasting,  is  a  fact  which  psycho- 
logy teaches  us,  but  the  professional  evangelist  habitually 
ignores.  It  must  be  said  even  that  a  great  deal  which  is 
done  to  secure  the  success  of  a  special  mission,  to  work  up 
the  conditions  of  a  revival,  is  from  the  psychological  stand- 
point thoroughly  unsound  if  what  is  aimed  at  is  not  a 
transitory  emotion,  but  a  permanent  change  of  the  direction 
of  the  life.  There  are  methods  used  by  some  evangelists 
which  are  immediately  effective,  but  which  can  be  shown 
to  be  an  illegitimate  invasion  of  the  sanctuary  of  the  soul ; 
an  insensible  and  yet  not  less  real  coercion  of  the  so-called 
convert  by  the  evangelist.  Such  are  some  of  the  facts 
psychology  can  teach  the  preacher. 

4.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  work  of  the 
evangelist  has  been  separated  from  the  work  of  the 
ministry,  and  the  special  evangelistic  mission  has  been  set 
up  beside  the  activities  of  the  Church.  It  may  be  admitted 
that  the  special  mission  in  the  sense  of  a  series  of  meetings 
each  evening  for  a  week  or  a  fortnight  has  advantages. 
There  should  be  a  series  of  subjects  carefully  selected, 
leading  on  from  the  sense  of  sin  to  the  hope  of  immortality 
through  the  different  stages  of  the  Christian  life,  setting 
forth  in  an  orderly  succession  the  steps  in  the  way  of  salva- 
tion.2  'j'jjg  interval  of  a  week  between  the  services  on  the 
Lord's  Day  allows  the  impression  of  one  day  to  fade  before 
the  next  can  deepen  it.  But  when  each  evening  the 
impression  of  the  preceding  is  assumed  and  confirmed,  the 
cumulative    effect    is    great.       Not    a  few    young  people, 

^  The  writer  may  be  excused  for  referring  to  his  book,  A  Course  of  Bible 
Study  for  Adohecents. 

^  The  writer  ventures  to  refer  the  reader  to  his  little  book,  The  Joy  of 
Finding,  a  series  of  addresses  delivered  at  such  missions,  based  on  the 
parable  of  the  Prodigal  Son,  and  to  A  Guide  to  Preachers,  p.  223,  where  the 
titles  of  a  similar  series  on  Paul's  autobiographical  references  are  given. 


340  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

already  influenced  by  Christian  teaching  and  training,  are 
under  such  continued  argument  and  appeal  brought  to 
more  distinct  consciousness,  and  more  deliberate  volition 
of  their  relation  to  Jesus  Christ  as  Saviour  and  Lord.  If 
the  minister  of  a  church  feels  that  a  new  voice  with  a 
fresh  presentation  of  the  truths  he  himself  has  been 
preaching  would  be  more  effective  than  his  own,  he  should 
get  a  brother-minister  of  tested  ability  in  this  kind  of 
work  to  do  it  for  him.  It  is  better  not  to  employ  a 
professional  evangelist  for  two  reasons.  In  the  first  place, 
the  theology  of  most  evangelists  is  of  a  very  crude  type ; 
and  it  is  not  desirable  that  young  people  accustomed  to 
the  more  cultured  presentation  of  the  Gospel  should  be 
subjected  to  this  inferior  type  of  teaching.  And  in  the 
second  place,  the  constant  repetition  of  this  kind  of  work 
tends  to  produce  in  the  evangelist  a  very  artificial  method, 
with  sometimes  even  what  cannot  be  otherwise  described 
than  as  tricks  for  producing  a  speedy  rather  than  a  lasting 
impression.  The  work  of  the  ministry,  with  its  varied 
experiences,  seems  to  be  necessary  to  keep  a  man  out  of 
this  evangelistic  rut.  For  these  reasons  let  the  minister 
himself  do  the  work  of  the  evangelist. 

5.  It  used  to  be  the  practice  of  many  ministers  to 
address  the  "  saints  "  in  the  morning,  and  the  "  sinners  "  in 
the  evening  service.  There  are  congregations  which  are  in 
the  evening  of  a  much  more  varied  character  than  in  the 
morning,  containing  fewer  of  the  regular  members,  and 
more  occasional  hearers.  And  it  may  be  conceded  that  it 
would  be  well  to  make  some  variation  in  the  type  of  the 
two  services.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  there  are  congrega- 
tions which  in  the  evening  consist  of  the  devoted  members 
who  are  not  content  with  attending  only  one  service ;  and 
their  presence  should  be  taken  into  account.  No  rigid 
rules  should  be  laid  down  in  this  regard.  Again,  there  are 
preachers  who  try  to  end  every  sermon  with  an  application 
first  to  the  saved,  and  then  to  the  unsaved.  The  applica- 
tion is  often  altogether  forced ;  and  the  following  of  any 
such    rule    gives   an    artificiality,  even    an    impression    of 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND  EVANGELIST      341 

insincerity  to  such  a  performance.  If  the  sermon  can  be 
developed  to  such  a  conclusion,  the  opportunity  should 
certainly  not  be  neglected ;  and  the  man  who  has  a 
passion  for  souls,  who  yearns  and  prays  and  works  for  the 
salvation  of  all  whom  he  can  reach,  will  without  any 
artifice  so  conceive  and  so  present  the  Gospel  that  the 
fervent  appeal  will  often  come  quite  inevitably — and  so 
altogether  effectively.  To  make  a  routine  of  what  should 
bear  the  marks  of  spontaneity  is  to  discount  the  value ; 
for  here  undoubtedly  "  familiarity  breeds  contempt."  Not 
in  every  sermon  can  the  preacher  force  himself  to  be  the 
evangelist,  as  he  must  aim  at  variety,  adaptation,  progress 
in  his  teaching ;  but  if  he  himself  dwells  near  the  centre 
of  the  Christian  revelation  in  the  redemption  which  is  in 
Christ  Jesus,  whether  his  sermon  leads  up  to  the  distinct 
appeal  for  decision  for  Christ  or  not,  he  will  be  bringing  to 
bear  upon  the  minds  and  hearts  of  his  hearers  the  tender 
and  yet  mighty  constraints  of  the  Saviourhood  and  Lord- 
ship of  Jesus  Christ.  He  will  be  led  from  time  to  time  to 
set  forth  explicitly  the  answer  to  the  question  that  is  often 
in  the  heart  when  it  does  not  rise  to  the  lips — "  What 
shall  I  do  to  be  saved  ? "  and  yet  he  will  so  answer  that 
the  saved  will  find  the  confirmation  of  their  own  faith,  and 
the  inspiration  of  their  own  consecration,  when  once  more 
they  see  their  Lord  uplifted  on  His  Cross.  If  his  spirit  as 
well  as  theology  be  evangelical,  even  if  his  method  be  not 
what  is  generally  called  evangelistic,  he  will  prove  himself 
ever  an  evangelist. 

6.  There  is  a  work  which  may  fall  to  the  preacher  as 
evangelist  which  must  be  mentioned.  It  is  the  work  of 
home  and  foreign  missions.  The  preacher  may  find,  and 
if  he  is  earnest  in  his  work  he  will  seek,  the  opportunity  of 
preaching  to  those  who  are  altogether  outside  the  Church 
and  its  ministries.  At  home  in  large  cities  there  are 
multitudes  who  never  enter  a  church  door ;  and  they 
ought  to  be  sought.  Open-air  preaching,  the  general 
method  of  Jesus,  is  not  used  by  the  Christian  ministry  as 
it  should  be,  and  is  often  left  to  the  incompetent ;  and  yet 


342  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

some  may  be  reached  in  this  way  who  could  not  be  other- 
wise won.  Public  halls,  theatres,  and  other  buildings,  to 
which  the  "  lapsed  masses "  are  in  the  habit  of  going  on 
week  days,  might  be  more  used  than  they  a,re  for  this 
purpose.  Such  preaching  must  command  the  interest  to 
hold  the  attention  of  the  hearers.  If  a  preacher  in  the 
open  air  ceases  to  interest,  his  audience  will  leave  him  ; 
the  people  will  not  come  to  a  meeting  unless  they  are 
attracted.  It  is  rather  a  disadvantage  that  the  preacher 
in  the  church  is  not  tested  in  the  same  way,  so  that  he 
cannot  discover  whether  his  preaching  is  effective  or  not ; 
but  often  routine  brings  many  hearers  to  church,  and 
decorum  keeps  them  there  even  when  they  are  uninterested. 
To  be  interesting  the  preacher  must  know  his  audience, 
and  adapt  himself  to  it,  not  by  vulgarity  or  sensationalism, 
but  by  simplicity,  variety,  directness  and  intensity  of 
speech,  by  the  use  of  illustrations  which  ordinary  people 
can  understand,  and  of  arguments  and  appeals  which  go 
home  to  them.  Into  further  details  regarding  this  special 
work  we  cannot  now  enter. 

7.  Still  more  needful  will  the  power  of  adaptation  be 
to  the  missionary  abroad.  Much  of  his  preaching  will  be 
in  the  open  air,  by  the  roadside,  in  the  bazaar,  wherever 
he  can  get  the  people  together  around  him.  Unless  he 
has  a  regular  congregation  of  converts,  he  will  not  attempt 
to  deliver  any  formal  discourse.  Whatever  the  temporary 
circumstances,  or  the  local  customs  require,  he  must  be 
ready  to  do.  To  talk,  to  argue,  to  answer  questions  and 
even  invite  them,  to  bear  with,  and  make  the  best  use  of 
interruptions,  to  be  content  with  an  audience  of  one — all 
this  belongs  to  missionary  preaching.  The  missionary 
must  know  and  understand  the  life  and  thought  of  the 
people,  and  he  must  use  the  language  that  they  not  only 
understand,  but  by  which  they  are  most  easily  moved  and 
deeply  impressed  For  him  it  is  in  the  highest  degree 
needful  to  recognise  that  never  man  spake  as  Jesus  did, 
so  that  he  may  learn  all  he  can  from  the  Master's  method. 
Keligious    beliefs    and  rites,  moral  standards    and   habits, 


PRIEST,   TEACHER,   PASTOR  AND   EVANGELIST      343 

however  crude,  should  not  be  disdained  as  points  of 
contact.  With  the  learned  in  the  Sacred  Scriptures  of  any 
ancient  faith  the  iDissionary  must  be  prepared  to  show  the 
superiority  of  his  Holy  Bible.  So  varied  are  the  conditions 
of  foreign  missionary  preaching  that  no  more  than  a  state- 
ment of  these  general  principles  can  be  here  attempted. 
The  theory  of  preaching  for  the  foreign  field  has  not  yet 
been  developed ;  and  this  is  a  task  the  urgency  of  which 
is  now  being  recognised,  but  only  inadequate  efforts  have 
as  yet  been  made  to  meet  the  demand. 


PART  III. 

THE   PREPARATION   AND 
THE   PRODUCTION   OF   THE   SERMON. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

It  is  on  the  sermon  that  the  Christian  preacher  fulfils  his 
callings ;  in  it  the  hvvafii<t  of  which  the  previous  division 
treated  becomes  the  ivepyeia,  the  faculty  functions.  In 
the  process  we  may  distinguish  two  stages,  there  is  the 
preparation  (the  invention  and  the  disposition  of  the  ancient 
rhetoric)  and  the  production  (the  elocution,  including  both 
the  composition  and  the  delivery  of  the  sermon), 

1.  The  preparation  of  the  sermon  may  be  taken  in  a 
narrower  and  a  wider  sense.  All  that  makes  the  preacher 
also  makes  the  sermon.  The  entire  development  of  the 
personality  as  the  channel  of  Truth  may  be  said  to  belong 
to  the  preparation.  As  apostle,  prophet  and  scribe  the 
preacher  is  getting  the  content  of  his  preaching.^  As 
scholar,  sage,  seer  and  saint  he  is  fitting  himself  to  convey 
the  message  he  receives.^  As  priest,  teacher,  pastor  and 
evangelist  he  is  fixing  the  forms  of  his  preaching  by  its 
pui^oses.^  It  seems  necessary  to  lay  stress  on  the  pre- 
paration in  the  wider  sense,  as  on  that  will  depend  the 
facihty  and  the  excellence  of  the  preparation  in  the 
narrower  sense.  Each  sermon  should  not  in  itself  be  an 
immense  labour  and  crushing  care  to  the  preacher,  who 
has  constantly  and  diligently  been  making  himself  fit  and 

»  See  Part  II.  Chapter  I.  *  Ibid.,  Chapter  II. 

»  7// «/.,  Chapter  III. 


INTRODUCTORY  345 

ready  for  the  task.^  It  should  be  a  free  and  happy 
exercise  of  powers  that  have  been  fully  developed  by  a 
fruitful  self-discipline.  It  should  not  be  necessary  for  him 
to  spend  hours  in  trying  to  find  a  text ;  but  he  should  be 
so  familiar  with  the  Scriptures  that  a  multitude  of  texts 
should  be  at  his  command,  and  that  these  texts  should 
suggest  their  treatment  at  once  because  he  so  thoroughly 
knows  their  contexts.  It  should  not  be  necessary  for  him 
to  search  high  and  low  for  material  for  his  sermon ;  but 
he  should  be  so  much  at  home  in  Christian  thought  and 
life  that  he  will  have  abundance  to  say  worth  hearing 
about  doctrine  and  practice,  principle  and  application  alike. 
It  should  not  be  necessary  for  him  to  go  in  search  of 
illustrations,  but  his  reading  and  his  experience  alike 
should  readily  offer  him  the  pictures  through  which  the 
truth  may  shine.  It  should  not  be  necessary  for  him  to 
rack  his  brains  to  discover  divisions  or  heads,  but  his  logic 
should  be  keen  enough,  and  his  psychology  subtle  enough, 
to  put  him  in  the  way  of  an  arrangement  that  will  be 
spontaneous  and  effective,  and  not  arbitrary  and  futile. 
Many  preachers  find  their  preparation  so  painful  and 
fruitless  a  toil,  because  they  forget  or  neglect  the  fact 
that  the  stream  cannot  rise  higher  than  its  source ;  the 
poor  personality  will  not  produce  the  rich  sermon.  Here  at 
the  outset  of  the  discussion  all  emphasis  must  be  put  again 
on  the  definition  of  preaching  as  truth  through  personality. 

2.  The  purpose  of  preaching  must  also  at  this  stage 
be  recalled.  It  is  for  the  eternal  life  of  the  hearers,  for 
it  is  so  easy  for  other  interests,  valuable  in  themselves,  to 
become  unduly  dominant.  (1)  One  interest  that  may 
obtrude  itself  is  the  personal.  The  preacher  may  think 
too  much  of  his  sermon  as  a  deliverance  of  himself,  as 
self-expression.  From  what  has  already  been  said  it  is 
quite  evident  that  the  writer  does  not  depreciate  the 
personality  of  the  preacher,  and  yet  the  personality  may 
become  too  prominent.  It  is  true  that  the  preacher  must 
himself  be  interested  if  he  is  to  interest ;  his  themes  must 

^  See  Hoyt,  The  Work  of  Preaching,  pp.  47-84. 


346  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

appeal  to  himself  if  he  is  by  them  to  appeal  to  others ;  but 
he  must  always  be  on  his  guard  against  self-absorption  in 
his  own  ideas,  moods,  aspirations.  The  pulpit  is  not 
exclusively  his  confessional  or  his  platform.  He  speaks 
as  representing  Christ  and  His  Church,  and  it  is  not 
himself  that  he  should  impress  on  others,  but  the  common 
salvation.  The  books  he  reads,  the  persons  he  meets,  the 
experiences  through  which  he  passes,  the  conclusions  about 
faith,  duty  or  destiny  he  reaches  as  the  result  of  his  study 
and  meditation,  may  and  must  affect  his  preaching ;  but  it 
is  not  that  he  may  candidly,  confidently  and  courageously 
express  himself  with  respect  to  any  of  these  that  he 
ascends  the  pulpit.  The  subjective  egotism  of  the  pulpit 
is  an  evil  to  be  guarded  against  by  preaching  the  objective 
universality  of  the  Gospel  committed  to  the  preacher  to  be 
delivered  by  him. 

(2)  In  the  demand  that  preaching  should  be  more 
expository  and  less  topical,  there  lurks  an  error  as  well  as 
dwells  a  truth.  In  what  has  already  been  said  about  the 
preacher  as  scribe  the  truth  has  been  fully  acknowledged. 
As  the  literature  of  the  divine  revelation  and  the  human 
redemption  in  Christ  Jesus  the  Holy  Scriptures  must  have 
a  large  place  in  Christian  preaching.  How  necessary  and 
valuable  to  the  preacher  in  the  preparation  of  his  sermon 
the  study  of  the  Scriptures  is,  will  in  a  subsequent  chapter 
be  still  more  fully  shown.  Now  the  error  in  the  demand 
must  be  exposed.  It  must  be  said  quite  boldly  that  the 
end  of  preaching  is  not  to  make  people  familiar  with  the 
Bible,  still  less  with  what  modern  scholarship  has  to  say 
about  it ;  it  is  to  bring  God  in  Christ  to  men,  and  men 
through  Christ  to  God ;  and  the  Bible  itself  must  be 
prized  and  used  only  as  a  means  to  this  end.  That  in  the 
Bible  class  or  by  special  courses  of  lectures  the  preacher 
may  share  with  others  his  scholarly  knowledge  of  the 
Bible,  is  not  only  freely  conceded  but  even  warmly 
commended.  But  in  the  sermon  as  not  only  part,  but 
even  an  act  of  public  worship,  information  about,  or 
explanation  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  must  be  subordinate  to 


INTRODUCTORY  347 

imparting  through  the  Gospel  the  eternal  life  in  God. 
Historical,  literary  and  even  theological  exposition  must 
always  be  secondary,  and  be  kept  within  the  narrowest 
limits  the  object  allows,  so  that  it  may  be  the  substance  of 
revelation  which  is  conveyed  to  the  hearers. 

(3)  The  hearers  have  a  necessary  place  in  the  interest 
of  the  preacher.  He  should  always  have  the  genuine  and 
intense  pastoral  solicitude.  He  should  be  guided  in  his 
preaching  by  his  knowledge  of  their  needs,  and  they  should 
feel  that  the  man  who  speaks  to  them  cares  for  them  with 
individual  affection.  There  may  be  occasions  when  it  is 
both  legitimate  and  necessary  for  the  preacher  to  deal 
explicitly  with  the  personal  and  domestic  circumstances 
of  some  of  his  hearers.  The  death  of  one  of  the  members, 
workers  or  officers  in  the  church  may  warrant  a  memorial 
sermon ;  but  this  should  not  be  a  frequent  practice,  and 
even  here  the  personal  appreciation  should  not  form  the 
whole  sermon,  but  should  be  dependent  on,  and  subordinate 
to,  the  main  function  of  the  pulpit  to  present  Christ,  and 
even  His  saints  only  as  they  reflect  rays  of  His  glory. 
Some  preachers  delight  in  personalities  and  domesticities ; 
every  event  of  importance  or  interest  to  their  congregation 
they  deem  worthy  of  notice  in  the  pulpit :  thus  they 
flatter  vanity  and  foster  triviality.  To  the  pastor  all  that 
affects  his  people  should  be  of  interest,  and  he  should  have 
the  fit  words  of  counsel,  cheer  or  comfort  in  his  private 
relations;  but  in  his  pulpit  he  is  concerned  with  the 
permanent  and  universal  interests  of  men  as  sinners  saved 
by  grace,  and  saints  being  made  meet  for  glory,  and  in  his 
sermon  he  should  regard  and  treat  his  hearers  in  this 
aspect  and  relation,  and  no  other. 

3.  The  preacher's  interest  is  in  the  truth  of  the 
Christian  Gospel  not  as  abstract  theology  or  ethics,  but 
as  the  testimony  to  and  interpretation  of  the  divine 
revelation  and  human  redemption  in  Christ  Jesus  the 
Lord,  in  his  own  personality  only  in  so  far  as  he  may 
make  it  as  wide,  deep  and  unimpeded  a  channel  for  the 
current  of  the  truth,  and  in  his  hearers  as  called  to  and 


348  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

capable  of  the  eternal  life  in  God.  The  first  interest  will 
demand  that  he  shall  present  as  far  as  he  can  apprehend 
the  whole  counsel  of  God.  In  his  choice  of  subjects  he 
will  endeavour  to  preserve  the  proportion  of  faith ;  he  will 
not  magnify  minor  subjects  which  interest  himself  and 
will  not  give  a  subordinate  place  to  themes  which  God 
has  Himself  exalted ;  he  will  linger  often  at  the  centre, 
and  will  not  wander  much  at  the  circumference  of  the 
content  of  the  divine  revelation.  While  bound  by  sincerity 
and  candour  to  preach  only  as  he  believes,  he  will  not 
pride  himself  on,  and  be  content  to  abide  in,  the  peculiarity 
of  his  own  beliefs ;  but  will  try  so  to  appreciate  for 
himself  that  he  will  be  constrained  to  commend  to  others 
all  that  it  is  in  their  highest  interests  to  know  and  hold. 
Whatever  it  is  profitable  for  them  to  hear  that  they  may 
grow  in  the  knowledge  and  grace  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
that  he  will  endeavour  adequately  and  proportionately 
and  harmoniously  to  offer  as  the  content  of  his  preaching. 

4.  The  purpose  of  preaching  must  determine  the 
form.  (1)  As  the  first  section  of  this  volume  has  shown, 
the  earliest  form  was  the  homily  and  the  sermon  came 
later.^  The  homily  is  a  familiar  informal  talk  within  the 
Christian  brotherhood  in  explanation  of  Christian  faith 
and  duty.  As  the  Epistle  of  James  and  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebreios  show,  the  homily  might  have  less  or  more  formal 
arrangement  of  the  matter  treated.  It  might  be  a 
succession  of  counsels,  or  a  development  of  an  argument. 
Unity  of  structure  was  not  a  primary  object.  Soon  the 
homily  attached  itself  to  a  passage  of  Scripture,  and  became 
a  running  commentary  on  the  text,  taking  up  clause  by 
clause  or  verse  by  verse.  In  the  sermon,  on  the  contrary,  a 
theme  is  chosen,  and  it  is  attached  more  or  less  closely  to 
the  text.  Both  of  these  forms  have  survived  to  the  present 
day.  The  homily  is  represented  by  the  lecture  on  a  portion 
of  Scripture  which  was  until  recently  the  practice  of  many 
Scottish  preachers  at  one  service  at  least  each  Sabbath. 
Entire  books  of  the  Bible  were  there  dealt  with,  and  the 

1  See  pp.  57-58  and  p.  89. 


INTRODUCTOKY  349 

exposition  of  one  of  the  Epistles  sometimes  extended  over 
several  years.  This  method  has  fallen  into  disuse,  and 
the  revival  need  not  be  desired,  as  a  better  use  for  the 
ends  of  preaching  can  be  made  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 
The  sermon  is  now  generally  accepted  as  the  desirable 
form  of  preaching.  What  is  now  in  discussion  is  whether 
the  sermon  should  be  topical  or  expository,  should  it  deal 
with  a  subject,  or  treat  a  text  ? 

(2)  In  seeking  to  answer  this  question,  we  must  make 
clear  what  we  mean  by  our  terms.  If  by  expository 
preaching  is  meant  the  explanation  of  the  separate  clauses 
of  a  verse,  or  the  separate  sentences  of  a  passage  without 
any  attempt  at  unity  of  presentation  and  impression, 
except  such  as  is  implied  in  the  verse  or  passage  itself, 
we  need  not  say  a  word  in  its  support,  as  such  unity 
should  be  the  aim  of  all  effective  public  speech.  If  by 
topical  preaching  is  meant  the  choice  of  subjects  of  accidental 
interest  or  trivial  importance,  with  little  (if  any)  connection 
with  the  Christian  Gospel,  which  can,  therefore,  be  attached 
to  a  text  of  Scripture  only  by  a  tour  de  force  of  exegesis, 
it  can  be  unreservedly  condemned.  Between  the  expository 
and  the  topical  sermon  which  can  be  approved  there  is 
no  necessary  antagonism.  A  text  which  can  be  the  basis 
of  a  sermon  must  contain  a  subject,  and  a  subject  may  be 
explained  by  means  of  a  text ;  we  come  to  a  knowledge 
and  understanding  of  both  together.  If  a  text  dealt  with 
a  number  of  subjects  it  would  not  be  suitable  for  the 
basis  of  a  sermon  unless  the  subjects  could  be  so  related 
as  to  be  brought  into  an  intelligible  unity ;  and  as  all 
portions  of  the  Bible  "  make  sense,"  few  texts  there  are 
(if  any)  in  which  such  unity  cannot  be  found,  even  though 
it  may  mean  some  study  and  meditation  to  discover  the 
principle  of  synthesis  in  each  case. 

(3)  It  may  be  admitted,  however,  that  while  these 
two  objects  are  quite  consistent,  yet  a  difference  will  be 
made  in  the  structure  of  the  sermon  as  one  or  other  is 
primary.  Can  we  determine  which  should  be  primary  ? 
With  some  hesitation  and  diffidence  the  writer  ventures 


350  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

to  give  his  own  definite  judgment  that  the  sermon  should 
be  the  presentation  of  the  subject  primarily  and  the 
exposition  of  the  text  secondarily.  For  this  view  a 
material  and  a  formal  reason  may  be  given,  {a)  As  regards 
the  first,  we  now  hold  that  the  Bible  is  not  the  Word  of 
God,  but  contains  the  Word  of  God ;  and  what  we  have  to 
do  is  to  discover  the  heavenly  treasure  in  the  earthen 
vessel.  Unless  in  exceptional  circumstances,  the  subject 
of  every  Christian  sermon  should  be  some  part  of  this 
Word  of  God ;  and  to  subordinate  the  text  to  the  subject 
of  the  sermon  is  nothing  else  than  exalting  the  treasure 
above  the  vessel.  We  must  present  the  truth  taught  in 
any  text  in  such  a  form  as  will  make  it  most  intelHgible, 
attractive  and  authoritative  for  those  who  hear ;  and 
often  the  text  is  not  explicitly  and  directly  the  truth  for 
men  to-day ;  but  they  must  be  shown  how  to  find  it  there. 
But  what  concerns  preachers  and  hearers  alike  is  not  the 
text  that  contains,  but  the  truth  that  is  contained.  Of 
topical  preaching  in  the  objectionable  sense,  the  writer 
is  no  advocate  when  he  thus  pleads  that  the  text  must  be 
subordinated  to  the  truth. 

(b)  As  regards  the  second  reason,  a  sermon  should  be 
a  unity,  and  unity  is  much  more  likely  to  be  attained  in 
the  presentation  of  a  subject  than  the  exposition  of  a  text. 
For  the  first  purpose  it  might  be  necessary  to  omit  a  good 
deal  that  the  second  would  demand.  An  exhaustive 
exposition  of  the  text  might  carry  us  far  beyond  the  bounds 
of  an  adequate  presentation  of  the  subject. 

(4)  This  judgment  does  not  involve,  however,  as 
might  at  first  sight  appear,  that  the  sermon  is  not  to  be 
expository  in  the  best  sense  of  the  word.  If,  as  we 
believe,  the  Scriptures  contain  the  Word  of  God,  we  go 
first  of  all  to  the  Scriptures  to  discover  what  the  Word  is. 
The  preacher  will  hesitate  about  dealing  with  subjects 
which  are  not  suggested  to  him  by  the  Scriptures,  while 
recognising  that  as  there  is  progress  in  the  Kingdom  of 
God  there  may  be  aspects  of  the  divine  truth  important 
for  us  to-day  which  have  little  (if  any)  attention  given  to 


INTRODUCTORY  351 

them  there.  He  may  find  implicit  in  a  text  a  truth  he 
wants  to  make  explicit,  and  as  an  honest  man  when  he 
takes  the  text,  he  will  frankly  state  this  difference.  What 
is  suggested  rather  than  asserted  by  the  text  he  will  deal 
with  only  as  suggested.  Freedom  without  arbitrariness 
must  be  insisted  on  as  necessary  for  the  modern  preacher 
in  his  choice  and  treatment  of  texts.  Most  themes  with 
which  the  Christian  preacher  wants  to  deal  are,  however, 
explicitly  presented  in  texts ;  and  in  dealing  with  them, 
he  will  derive  his  presentation  of  the  truth  as  fully  as  he 
can  from  the  exposition  of  the  text.  Understood  in  this 
way  the  demand  for  expository  preaching  is  entirely 
justified,  and  is  not  at  all  inconsistent  with  topical 
preaching  in  the  proper  sense. 

5.  In  answering  the  question  of  the  form  of  the  sermon 
in  favour  of  the  topical  rather  than  the  expository  on  the 
formal  ground  that  the  unity  of  the  sermon  is  more  likely 
to  be  attained,  the  writer  may  have  appeared  to  commit 
himself  to  an  opinion  as  regards  the  relation  of  rhetoric 
to  homiletics.  The  question  has  been  much  discussed  by 
writers  on  the  subject,  whether  homiletics  should  be  based 
on  rhetoric  or  not.  As  a  form  of  public  speech  the  sermon 
must  necessarily  be  constructed,  if  it  is  to  be  as  effective 
as  possible,  in  accordance  with  the  psychological,  logical 
and  literary  principles  of  effective  speech ;  and  about  this 
position  there  should  be  no  dispute.  The  question  to  be 
determined  is  this:  does  the  theory  of  public  speech, 
known  as  rhetoric,  which  has  come  down  to  us  from 
ancient  Greece,  contain  such  permanent  and  universal 
principles  as  demand  acceptance  from  the  modern  preacher, 
or  are  these  principles,  even  if  contained  in  it,  presented 
in  a  form  so  limited  by  the  conditions  of  ancient  oratory 
as  to  be  valueless  for  him  ?  Christlieb  ^  very  decidedly 
excludes  rhetoric  from  homiletics.  "  From  this  whole 
higher  sphere,  i.e.,  from  the  contents  and  spirit  of  the 
Gospel  corresponding  to  the  nature  and  aim  of  the 
Kingdom  of  Christ,  and  in  particular,  of  Christian  worship, 

^  Homilctie,  English  translation,  p.  22. 


352  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER       - 

homiletic,  as  a  science  peculiar  to  Christianity,  and  therefore 
occupying  an  independent  position  in  relation  to  rhetoric,  has 
to  develop  the  idea  of  preaching,  and  its  execution  in 
matter  and  form."  In  Chapter  IV.  his  treatment  shows 
that  this  cannot  be  an  absolute  independence.  Bassermann,^ 
on  the  contrary,  deals  in  the  first  part  of  his  book  with 
Ehetoric  generally  before  in  the  second  part  dealing  with 
Worship,  and  the  third  with  Christian  Preaching.  His 
subsequent  representation  of  the  sermon  as  a  work  of  art, 
however,  limits  his  outlook,  and  he  puts  fetters  on  Christian 
preaching  which  should  not  be  imposed  on  it.  He  illus- 
trates the  peril  of  allowing  theory  to  dominate  practice. 
Vinet  ^  takes  the  proper  middle  course.  "  It  is  certain 
that  eloquence  is  one ;  that  a  man  is  not  eloquent  in  the 
pulpit  on  other  conditions  than  in  the  rostrum  or  the  bar ; 
there  are  no  more  two  rhetorics  than  there  are  two  logics ; 
but  the  nature  of  ecclesiastical  discourse  brings  differences, 
adds  rules,  which  form  a  special  art,  under  the  name  of 
homiletics.  .  .  .  Ehetoric  is  the  genus,  homiletics  is  the 
species."  He  divides  his  treatment  into  three  parts, 
Invention,  Disposition  and  Elocution.  The  Christian  preacher 
should  be  the  master,  and  not  the  slave  of  the  Ancient 
Rhetoric.^  The  spirit,  purpose  and  content  of  Greek  or 
Roman  eloquence  were  so  different  from  those  of  Christian 
preaching  that  the  rules  of  the  one  cannot  simply  be 
transferred  to  the  other.  And  yet,  as  Vinet  properly  says, 
the  principles  of  eloquence  are  the  same  for  all  time. 
Learning  all  he  can  from  homiletics  about  his  art,  the 
preacher  must  not  be  brought  into  subjection  to  his  art, 
for  preaching  is  more   and    greater    than  an  artistic  dis- 

*  Handbuch  der  Geistlichen  Beredsamkeit ;  see  §  34,  pp.  211-219. 

2  HomiUtique  ou  Thiorie  de  la  Pridication,  p.  5. 

^  Bassermann  in  his  book  deals  first  of  all  with  the  nature  of  Rhetoric  as 
a  natural  power,  an  art,  or  a  science,  and  gives  an  account  of  the  differences 
of  opinion  on  this  question  among  the  ancient  writers.  Secondly,  he  shows 
that  among  the  ancients  Rhetoric  was  not  developed  scientifically  or  in  such 
a  way  as  to  give  it  a  genuinely  eesthetic  character,  and  that  it  ran  counter 
to  our  moral  ideas  inasmuch  as  it  aimed  at  persuasion  not  by  evidence  and 
argument  only,    but  by  an   appeal  to   passion.     Thirdly,  he  sketches  the 


INTRODUCTORY  353 

play,   and    the    preacher   must   always  claim  the   Spirit's 
freedom. 

6.  The  writer  desires  to  emphasise  his  claim  for  the 
freedom  of  the  pulpit.  Sermons  are  not  to  be  made  ac- 
cording to  rule  or  pattern ;  imitation  of  great  preachers 
is  a  tragic  mistake  for  lesser  men ;  a  man  must  be  as  fully 
himself  as  he  can  in  the  pulpit.  All  that  a  book  on 
Homiletics  can  do  is  to  state  what  have  been  found  to  be 
the  principles  of  effective  preaching,  to  warn  against 
mistakes,  into  which  inexperience  may  fall,  to  offer  counsels 
which  experience  suggests,  to  show  how  each  preacher  with 
due  regard  to  his  own  individuality  may  set  about  gather- 
ing his  material  and  putting  it  into  the  best  shape.  The 
preparation  and  production  of  a  sermon  is  a  living  process, 
and  should  have  the  spontaneous  movement  of  life ;  but  as 
health  can  be  promoted  and  disease  averted  by  a  wise  and 
good  regimen,  so  the  preacher  may  be  guided  and  guarded. 
The  genius  in  the  pulpit  goes  by  no  rules,  and  does  not 
need  them  ;  but  as  all  preachers  are  not  geniuses,  they  may 
wisely  look  for  some  direction  in  doing  their  work.     The 

influence  of  the  Ancient  Rhetoric  in  the  Middle  Ages  and  at  the  Reformation. 
To  the  three  kinds  of  oratory,  recognised  by  the  classical  orators,  genus 
judiciale,  demonstratiimm,  deliherativum,  Melanchthon  added  didacticum. 
Fourthly,  he  deals  with  the  revival  of  oratory  and  rhetoric  in  the  eighteenth 
century  and  the  discussion  of  the  subject  in  the  nineteenth.  The  revival  was 
represented  in  Germany  by  Gottsched,  in  France  by  F^nelon,  and  in  Great 
Britain  by  Blair.  F^nelon  very  briefly  states  the  aims  of  oratory.  "  Ainsi 
je  crois  que  toute  I'^loquence  se  reduit  k  prouver,  a  peindre  et  k  toucher." 
(Accordingly  I  believe  that  all  eloquence  is  reduced  to  proving,  painting 
and  touching.)  Blair  in  his  lectures  on  Itheloric  and  Belles  Lettres  (1783) 
was  influenced  by  Hume's  Essay  of  Eloquence,  the  first  summons  to  ennoble 
oratory  by  following  the  best  examples  of  antiquity.  Blair  defines  eloquence 
as  '  *  the  Art  of  speaking  in  such  a  manner  as  to  attain  the  end  for  which  we 
speak  "  ;  but  he  distinguished  the  eloquence  of  the  pulpit  from  that  before 
popular  assemblies,  or  at  the  bar.  Schott  tried  to  defend  Rhetoric  against 
the  charge  of  Kant,  that  though  its  end  might  be  good,  its  means  must 
always  be  bad,  and  argued  that  the  orator  may  make  a  moral  use  of  all  the 
means  of  influencing  men  which  psychology  reveals  to  him.  Theremin 
insists  on  the  ethical  character  of  rhetoric  as  purposeful  action  on  others. 
Lastly,  after  this  historical  sketch  Bassermann  gives  his  own  theory,  which 
need  not  be  here  reproduc-d,  as  what  seems  of  value  in  it  has  been  taken 
due  account  of  by  the  writer  in  the  subsequent  chapters  of  this  volume. 


354  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

genius  cannot  always  give  a  disclosure  of  his  secret,  and 
may  even,  if  he  attempt  it,  mislead  men  who  have  not  his 
gifts.  What  follows  is  not  offered  to  those  who  do  not, 
but  to  those  who  do  need  help,  and  is  offered  as  the  result 
of  experience,  study  and  meditation. 


CHAPTER   I. 

THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE   SERMON. 

1.  What  is  lacking  in  many  books  on  preaching  is  an 
adequate  recognition  of  the  variety  of  forms  which  the 
public  speaking  of  the  Christian  minister  must  to-day 
assume ;  and  before  dealing  with  the  kinds  of  sermons 
which  the  preacher  may  be  called  on  to  prepare  and 
produce,  the  writer  would  direct  attention  to  this  bewilder- 
ing variety.  The  minister  may  be  expected  to  deliver  a 
lecture,  to  teach  a  lesson  in  Bible  class  or  Sunday  school, 
to  offer  a  few  remarks,  to  give  an  address,  to  make  a 
speech. 

(1)  As  regards  the  first  two,  instruction  is  the  primary 
object ;  and  here  command  of  the  subject  to  be  taught  on 
the  one  hand  and  acquaintance  with  the  methods  of 
teaching  on  the  other  hand  are  important.  The  study  of 
a  subject  outside  of  the  routine  of  the  pulpit,  be  it  his- 
torical, literary  or  scientific,  is  a  great  advantage  to  the 
preacher ;  and,  if  he  have  the  opportimity  of  showing  his 
interest  in,  and  offering  his  assistance  to  any  movement  for 
the  diffusion  of  culture,  he  should  readily  and  gladly  under- 
take the  duty,  if  he  have  any  competence  to  discharge  it. 
Accurate  and  adequate  knowledge,  clear  exposition  and 
orderly  arrangement  are  here  the  conditions  of  effective- 
ness. 

(2)  The  Bible  class  is  to  the  minister  who  conducts  it 
himself  a  valuable  discipline,  if  he  takes  its  claims  as 
seriously  as  they  should  be  taken.  Apart  from  the 
practical  advantage  it  offers  for  close  contact  with  the 
young  men  and  women  of  the  Church,  at  an  age  when  they 
are  most  sensitive  and  responsive  to   influence,  it  should 

365 


356  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

give  him  a  stimulus  in  his  own  study.  He  should  select  a 
subject  which  will  require  of  him  special  reading,  so  that 
he  will  be  improving  himself  as  well  as  others.  Much 
modern  scholarship  about  the  Bible,  the  history  of  the 
Christian  Church,  theology  and  ethics,  of  which  he  cannot 
make  direct  use  in  the  pulpit,  may  here  be  utilised  in 
preparing  the  young  people  for  facing  the  dangers,  diffi- 
culties and  doubts  of  the  world  into  which  they  are 
passing.  That  this  may  be  presented  so  as  to  interest  and 
attract,  there  must  be  the  art  of  the  teacher.  While  there 
is  a  natural  gift  for  teaching,  which  all  do  not  possess,  study 
and  practice  may  develop  even  a  very  small  capacity. 
And  the  preacher  in  the  pulpit  will  be  the  better  of  some 
knowledge  of  and  skill  in  the  art  of  teaching.  In  the 
Sunday  school  even  more  than  the  Bible  class  this  art 
will  be  necessary.  It  seems  unreasonable  to  demand  that 
every  minister  shaU  be  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  the 
Beginners'  and  Primary  Department ;  but  it  is  reasonable 
to  expect  them  to  know  enough  about  the  method  of 
education,  based  on  psychology,  to  be  able  to  hold  the 
attention  by  keeping  the  interest  of  boys  and  girls  from 
nine  years  to  fifteen.  The  writer  cannot  here  attempt  to 
expound  the  method,  but  can  only  insist  on  the  gain  of  a 
knowledge  of  it. 

(3)  The  request  to  offer  a  few  remarks  should  not  be 
regarded  as  justifying  a  waste  of  the  time  of  the  hearers 
by  irrelevant  and  futile  talking.  The  occasion  may  supply 
the  content,  but  there  should  be  even  in  such  a  case  the 
endeavour  to  say  something  worth  saying  in  a  form  not 
unworthy  of  one  who  fulfils  the  calling  of  the  preacher. 
Humour  and  geniality  may  be  altogether  in  place,  but 
silliness  and  familiarity  are  not. 

(4)  It  would  be  difficult  to  state  precisely  wherein  an 
address  is  expected  to  differ  from  a  sermon.  It  is  usually 
shorter,  has  no  text,  and  is  less  definite  in  form,  but  the 
less  the  time  available  the  more  need  of  making  the  best 
use  of  it  possible.  A  definite  purpose  there  should  be, 
even  if  no  subject  is  explicitly  mentioned,  and  the  rules  of 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   THE   SERMON  357 

clear  exposition  and  orderly  arrangement  apply  no  less 
than  to  the  sermon.  If  there  is  any  difference  between  an 
address  and  a  speech,  it  is  that  the  address  aims  at  moral 
and  religious  influence,  the  speech  belongs  to  the  realm  of 
civic  and  political  activity. 

(5)  Without  entering  on  the  controversial  topic  of 
what  share  the  preacher  should  take  in  the  public  life  of 
the  community  to  which  he  belongs,  one  may  venture  the 
opinion  that  the  preacher  should  at  least  have  the  capacity 
to  speak  intelligently  and  effectively  on  subjects  that  lie 
beyond  the  range  of  his  more  immediate  interests.  In  such 
speech  it  will  be  well  for  him  to  avoid  giving  the  impression 
that  he  is  transferring  to  the  platform  the  method  and 
manner  of  the  pulpit.  Information,  exposition,  illustration, 
argument,  and  appeal  in  simple  and  direct  language  are 
what  such  speaking  demands ;  humour  is  here  of  great 
value,  and  readiness  to  take  advantage  of  objections  or 
interruptions. 

2.  Coming  now  to  the  preacher's  more  immediate 
concern,  it  is  to  be  observed  that  differences  of  purpose, 
audience,  occasion,  etc.,  demand  variety  iu  sermons.  The 
first  broad  distinction  which  must  be  recognised  is  that 
between  what  may  be  called  edifying  and  evangelising 
preaching.^  (1)  As  has  already  been  maintained,  the 
sermon  is  a  part,  and  even  act  of  worship,  as  the  confession 
by  the  community  of  the  faith  it  holds,  and  the  life  it 
seeks  for  itself ;  it  is  gratitude  for  God's  grace,  and  aspira- 
tion for  man's  goodness.  The  preacher  here  represents  the 
congregation  before  God.  {a)  This  confession  does  not, 
however,  exclude  edification.  To  hear  from  another  ex- 
plicitly what  one  believes  and  aims  at  is  to  be  confirmed  in 
faith  and  duty.  When  ideas  and  ideals  are  made  more 
certain  and  definite  by  another,  specially  qualified  for  such 
a  task,  than  they  have  ever  been  in  one's  own  thought,  one 
is  instructed  and  influenced.  What  is  already  possessed  is 
now  more  fully  possessed  than  it  was  before.  This  is  the 
answer  to  those  who  object  that  the  pulpit  has  nothing  new 

'  See  Hoyt's  The  Preacher,  chaps.  13  and  14,  pp.  259-304. 


358  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

to  teach  Christian  people,  but  only  repeats  what  they  have 
known  from  youth.  There  is  a  repetition  which  can  only 
weary,  and  that  certainly  the  pulpit  must  avoid ;  but  there 
is  a  reaffirmation  which  can  come  ever  with  freshness  of 
interest  and  influence ;  and  the  test  of  the  capacity  of  the 
preacher  is  whether  he  can  on  behalf  of  the  community 
reaffirm  freshly  without  wearying  repetition,  (h)  This 
objection  leads  some  preachers  to  a  mistaken  search  after 
originality  in  the  content  and  form  of  their  preaching.  It 
may  be  said,  however,  that  there  is  a  kind  of  originality 
which  is  infidelity  to  the  common  Christian  inheritance, 
and  a  freshness  which  is  gained  at  the  expense  of  truth. 
Many  sermons  from  the  Christian  pulpit  assume,  and 
rightly  assume,  that  those  addressed  share  the  common 
Christian  faith  and  life  with  the  preacher.  To  enlighten, 
quicken  and  strengthen  believers  is  the  task  the  preacher 
must  set  himself.  So  varied  is  the  presentation  of  the 
inheritance  of  the  Christian  Church  in  truth  and  grace  in 
the  Holy  Scriptures  that  it  cannot  be  exhausted  by  him 
who  is  an  instructed  scribe.  So  manifold  are  the  needs  of 
a  Christian  congregation  that  no  monotony  in  applying  the 
divine  provision  to  the  human  necessity  should  be  feared. 
So  progressive  may  be  the  development  of  the  Christian 
preacher,  that  it  is  not  necessary  for  him  to  be  repeating 
himself.  It  is  to  be  feared,  however,  that  preachers  and 
hearers  alike  do  often  grow  "  stale  " ;  if  familiarity  does  not 
breed  contempt,  it  at  least  lessens  sensibility,  and  tradition 
and  convention  banish  the  surprise  and  wonder  with  which 
the  Gospel  should  be  received.  A  religious  revival  begins 
when  the  old  truth  is  freshly  presented  with  a  new 
apprehension,  or  a  fuller  conviction.  But  the  preacher 
should  ever  make  it  his  aim  that  he  will  so  far  as  in  him 
lies,  strive  ever  to  present  the  old  truth  freshly  even  to 
those  who  already  know  it,  believe  it,  and  live  by  it. 

(2)  Even  if  in  the  ordinary  congregration  there  should 
be  very  few  who  are  still  outside  of  the  Kingdom  of  God, 
strangers  to  the  grace  of  Christ,  the  preacher  should  not 
forget  and  neglect  his  duty  as  an  evangelist.     Even  if  the 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   THE  SERMON  359 

unevangelised  be  few,  they  are  not  to  be  disregarded 
(would  that  there  were  more  of  them  within  the  sacred 
walls !),  for  the  Good  Shepherd  went  after  the  one  sheep 
that  was  lost.^  Besides,  many  young  people,  who  cannot 
be  regarded  as  not  Christians,  still  need  to  be  summoned 
to  a  more  deliberate  and  decisive  relation  to  Christ  as 
Saviour  and  Lord.  Those  who  know  most  of  the  Christian 
life  are  the  least  likely  to  be  displeased  with  the  argument 
and  appeal  which  would  bring  others  to  their  Saviour  and 
Lord.  In  this  kind  of  preaching  there  is  the  danger  of  a 
deadening  repetition.  To  begin  with  the  question.  Are 
you  saved  ?  is  not  the  most  effective  method  of  making 
men  concerned  about  their  salvation.  To  end  the  sermon 
with  words  specially  addressed  to  the  unconverted,  if 
what  has  gone  before  has  not  been  fitted  to  arouse  any 
interest,  is  to  indulge  in  a  foolish  futility.  The  professional 
evangelist  who  has  acquired  "  the  tricks  of  the  trade "  is 
the  last  person  from  whom  the  Christian  minister  should 
learn  how  to  do  "  the  work  of  an  evangelist."  If  he  does 
not  see  clearly  and  feel  keenly  the  difference  between  life 
without  and  Ufe  in  Christ,  if  he  has  not  the  passion  to 
seek  and  save  the  lost,  he  had  better  not  try  to  address 
the  unconverted ;  but  he  should  then  ask  himself  if  he  is 
at  all  fit  to  be  a  Christian  minister. 

(3)  Kecognising  the  broad  distinction  between  edifying 
and  evangelistic  preaching,  and  maintaining  that  the  definite 
purpose  of  a  sermon  should  be  either  the  one  or  the  other, 
we  should  not  press  the  difference  unduly,  for  a  text  may 
allow  an  application  both  to  the  saved  and  the  unsaved, 
and  a  subject  may  have  an  aspect  turned  to  each  ;  and 
the  preacher  would  be  a  foolish  theorist  who  did  not  use 
his  opportunity  to  impress  and  influence  the  one  or  the 
other.  There  may  be  places  and  times  (and  would  to  God 
that  for  most  preachers  there  were  more  of  them  !)  when 
the  godless  can  be  reached,  and  then  the  worship  and 
sermon  can  be  more  completely  concentrated  on  the  one 
object  to  win  men  for  Christ.     But  even  in  the  ordinary 

1  Lk  \h\ 


360  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

conditions  amid  which  most  preachers  do  their  work,  the 
desire  and  purpose  to  present  Christ  as  Saviour  and  Lord 
to  those  who  as  yet  know  Him  not  should  be  constant. 

3.  The  preacher  must  also  take  into  account  the 
difference  of  age  in  those  whom  he  addresses,  and  must 
try  and  adapt  himself  to  their  varying  needs.  (1)  In 
recent  years,  much  more  attention  has  been  given  to  the 
boys  and  girls,  the  young  men  and  young  women.  For 
the  first  class  it  is  usual  to  provide  a  short  address  often 
called  the  Children's  Portion  (five  to  ten  minutes)  at  the 
ordinary  morning  service ;  but  it  may  well  be  asked,  Is 
that  enough  ?  ^  A  children's  service  held  in  a  hall,  and 
conducted  by  another  person  than  the  minister,  has  the 
disadvantage  that  it  detaches  the  religious  interests  of  the 
children  from  the  public  worship  of  the  Church,  and  the 
habit  of  church -going  is  not  begun  at  the  age  when  it  is 
most  easily  formed.  The  writer  himself  in  his  last 
pastorate  devoted  the  ordinary  morning  service  on  the 
first  Sunday  of  each  month  to  the  boys  and  girls ;  and  as 
this  service  was  confined  to  an  hour,  time  remained  for  a 
special  address  to  the  older  people  at  the  Communion 
Service  which  followed.  While  a  knowledge  of  the 
method  of  teaching  is  here  an  essential  qualification,  the 
Children's  Sermon  ^  should  not  be  forced  into  the  mould  of 
the  Sunday-school  lesson.  It  is  well  for  the  boys  and 
girls  to  get  accustomed  to  the  form  of  preaching  to  which 
on  other  Sundays,  as  they  sit  with  their  parents,  they 
will  be  expected  to  give  such  attention  as  they  can.  A 
text,  an  incident,  a  conversation,  a  character  may  be  taken 
as  the  subject.  The  language  must  be  simple  and  clear 
(but  not  babyish  talk),  the  arrangement  orderly ;  allitera- 
tion and  other  aids  to  memory  should  not  be  disdained  in 
presenting  the  main  divisions  of  the  sermon ;  the  illustra- 
tions should  be  abundant,  but  care  should  be  taken  that 

^  See  Hoyt's  Vital  Elements  of  Preaching,  pp.  141-160. 

2  So  it  is  called,  but  it  is  really  in  most  cases  addressed  to  those  who 
object  to  being  called  and  treated  as  children,  the  boys  and  girls  above  eight 
or  nine  years  of  age. 


THE   CHARACTER  OF  THE  SERMON  361 

they  do  not  awaken  incredulity,  as  many  stories  about 
extraordinarily  good  and  godly  boys  and  girls  do,  or  provoke 
ridicule,  since  the  sense  of  humour  is  often  very  quick  in 
youth ;  the  starting-point  should  be  from  what  is  familiar 
to  the  boys  and  girls  in  their  common  surroundings,  and 
the  goal  should  be  an  application  of  what  has  been  taught 
to  their  daily  life.  There  must  be  familiarity  and 
sympathy  with  young  life  so  that  adult  experience  and 
character  shall  not  be  demanded,  but  only  such  Christian 
life  as  belongs  properly  to  the  stage  of  the  natural  develop- 
ment which  has  been  reached.  As  the  Bible  has  been 
written  not  for  children  but  adults,  it  is  not  in  all  its  parts 
equally  suitable  for  them ;  and  yet  as  parts  were  written 
for  adults  at  an  immature  stage  of  moral  and  religious 
development,  much  can  be  found  in  it  that  fits  their 
capacity.  The  Christian  life  as  the  faith,  hope  and  love 
of  the  child  of  God  towards  the  Father  in  personal 
discipleship  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  one  which  in  all 
its  essential  features  can  be  lived  by  boys  and  girls ;  and 
there  need  be  no  fear  of  premature  development  in  seeking 
to  win  boys  and  girls  for  this  relationship  to  God  in 
Christ.  The  stories  about  children,  boys  or  girls,  in  the 
Bible,  the  dealing  of  Jesus  with  the  young,  the  graces, 
virtues  and  duties  which  belong  even  to  youth,  may  be 
dealt  with  in  the  Children's  Sermon.^  As  regards  the 
Children's  Address  at  the  ordinary  service  a  single  story 
or  picture  or  symbol  may  be  all  possible  within  the  time ; 
it  may  convey  its  own  lesson,  but  the  writer  fails  to  see 
why  the  speaker  to  children  should  be  forbidden,  as  he  is 
by  some  theorists,  to  help  them  to  understand  the  truth  it 
may  contain.  If  the  Children's  Address  can  be  related  to 
the  subject  of  the  sermon,  it  may  awaken  the  interest  of 
both  old  and  young  for  the  sermon ;  but  it  should  not  be 
so  subordinated  to  the  sermon  that  the  interests  of  the 
boys  and  girls  would  be  sacrificed  in  any  degree. 

(2)  Not  less  urgent  is  the  claim  of  the  young  men  and 

*  See  the  writer's  The  Minister  and  the    Yo%mg  Life  of  the  Church, 
chap.  iii. 


362  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

young  women  on  the  solicitude  of  the  preacher.  To 
attract  them  it  may  be  necessary  that  the  preacher  should 
allow  himself  a  wider  range  of  subject  and  treatment  than 
is  common  in  the  pulpit.^  Much  to  the  indignation  of  a 
few  narrow  "  saints,"  the  writer  ventured  to  give  two  series 
of  lectures  on  Christian  Truth  in  Modern  Literature,  using 
classic  works  in  illustration  of  lessons  of  faith  and  duty 
necessary  for,  and  profitable  to,  those  entering  on  manhood 
or  womanhood.  The  literary  interest  was  subordinate  to 
the  religious  and  moral ;  and  yet  it  was  an  added  gain 
that  an  interest  in  good  literature  was  promoted  among  at 
least  some  of  the  hearers.  The  moral  dangers,  the  intel- 
lectual difficulties,  the  social  responsibilities  of  the  class 
addressed  may  be  dealt  with ;  but  what  should  be  put  in 
the  forefront  is  the  urgency  of  conscious  and  voluntary 
decision  for  Christ  for  those  who  have  not  yet  taken  the 
step  as  the  essential  condition  of  the  fulfilment  of  the 
promise  and  the  avoidance  of  the  peril  of  their  life,  and 
the  summons  to  those  who  are  already  Christians  to  make 
their  experience  more  vitally  and  their  character  more 
vigorously  Christian  than  was  possible  in  adolescence. 
The  writer  never  found  it  necessary  to  address  the  young 
men  separately  ;  and  the  larger  influence  and  service  of 
women  in  modern  society  makes  imperative  that  they  should 
not  be  less  considered  than  men  have  been  hitherto. 

(3)  His  pastoral  experience  has  convinced  the  writer 
that  the  middle-aged  need  the  attention  of  the  Christian 
preacher  no  less  than  the  young.  If  the  passions  of  youth 
with  their  perils  have  abated,  middle  age  has  its  own  evils : 
a  lessening  enthusiasm,  a  growing  indifference,  an  increas- 
ing absorption  in  the  cares  of  the  world  and  the  pursuit 
of  wealth,  an  imperceptible  decrease  of  the  vitality  and 
vigour  of  the  soul.  An  occasional  sermon  of  warning  and 
encouragement  to  the  fathers  and  mothers  as  well  as  the 
sons  and  daughters  is  not  less  necessary. 

(4)  The  comfort  that  is  spoken  to  the  aged  meets  not 
these    cases    alone,    but    also    the    needs    of    the    weary, 

^  See  the  book  just  mentioned,  chap.  vii. 


THE   CHARACTEE  OF   THE  SERMON  363 

the  burdened,  the  sick,  and  the  bereaved,  represented  in 
every  congregation.^  The  Bible  is  a  book  of  consolation ; 
and  the  preacher  does  not  do  justice  either  to  its  wealth  or 
the  needs  of  men  if  he  does  not  include  among  the  kinds 
of  sermons  which  give  variety  to  his  ministry  those  in 
which  he  applies  its  wealth  to  their  needs.  For  the 
varying  circumstances  of  life  the  preacher  must  have  a 
quick  eye,  and  a  heart  ready  to  respond  to  the  appeals  of 
human  hearts  as  affected  by  them.  It  is  often  only  by  a 
personal  experience  of  bereavement  that  a  preacher  learns 
how  deep  is  the  desolation  that  death  brings  into  the 
home,  and  yet  also  how  sustaining  the  hope  that  Christ 
inspires;  and  then  he  resolves  that  he  will  seek  to 
comfort  others  as  he  himself  had  been  comforted ;  but 
why  does  he  wait  to  be  taught  by  his  personal  experience 
what  sympathy  with  others  should  have  taught  him  ? 

4.  The  preacher  must  also  ask  himself  the  question : 
What  impression  does  he  intend  to  bring  about  ?  For  it 
surely  need  not  be  said  that  he  wants  to  secure  the 
attention  and  command  the  interest  in  order  that  he  may 
exercise  an  influence  over  his  hearers.  (1)  In  order  that 
he  may  do  this,  his  sermon  must  have  not  only  a  formal 
but  even  a  material  unity.  Many  preachers  divide  atten- 
tion, distract  interest,  and  so  destroy  influence  by  having 
"  too  many  irons  in  the  fire,"  to  use  a  homely  phrase.  Not 
only  from  the  sesthetic  point  of  view  is  this  a  mistake,  but 
still  more  from  the  practical.  As  regards  the  aesthetic 
point  of  view,  a  few  sentences  from  Bassermann  ^  may  be 
quoted. 

"  As  the  chief  law  of  all  artistic  production  we  recog- 
nized oneness  in  manifoldness,  an  inner  harmony  of  the 
varied  which  appears  combined  into  a  work  of  art,  produced 
by  an  idea  ruling  the  whole  and  determining  from  withni 
each  single  member,  an' organic  combination  of  a  single 
centre  and  a  multiplicity  of  parts,  which  so  presents  itself 
to  the  observer,  that  it  awakens  his  satisfaction  and  compels 
him  to  judge  it  beautiful."     As  regards  the  practical  stand- 

1  Cf.  Hoyt's  Fital  Elements  of  Preaching,  pp.  117-137. 
»  Handhuch  dtf  Oeistlichen  Beredsamkeit,  pp.  212-213. 


364  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

point,  Vinet  ^  states  it  fully  and  clearly.  "  The  oratorical 
discourse  still  more  imperatively  (than  the  work  of  art) 
demands  unity.  Not  being  read,  but  heard,  it  would  more 
quickly  fatigue  the  attention,  if  it  compelled  it  to  move 
successively  in  several  directions.  Lasting  in  comparison 
with  other  productions  only  a  short  time,  it  is  still  less 
allowable  for  it  to  occupy  the  hearer  with  several  subjects. 
Summoned  to  act  upon  the  will,  it  gains  in  this  respect  in 
concentrating  itself  on  one  single  thought.  There  is  the 
same  difference  between  a  discourse  full,  but  incoherent, 
uncertain  in  its  direction,  or  undisciplined,  as  between  a 
crowd  and  an  army.  The  strongest  thoughts,  which  have 
not  a  common  bond,  injure  one  another,  and  by  so  much 
the  more  as  they  are  stronger.  It  requires  very  strong 
minds  to  draw  profit  from  what  is  not  one,  or  does  not  of 
itself  fall  into  unity.  Assailed  in  turn  by  a  crowd  of 
impressions  which  neutralise  one  another,  they  are  not  made 
captive  by  any,  and  are  not  fixed  on  any." 

(2)  These  considerations  are  here  presented,  although 
the  subject  of  unity  must  be  considered  more  fully  in  a 
subsequent  chapter,  as  a  reason  why  the  preacher  should 
determine  at  the  very  outset  of  his  sermon  what  is  the 
precise  object  that  he  is  setting  before  himself.  Does  he 
desire  to  enlighten  the  reason  or  conscience,  quicken  the 
sentiments,  or  determine  the  will  of  his  hearers  ?  It  is 
true  that  the  human  personality  is  a  unity,  and  that 
we  cannot  regard  thinking,  feeling,  willing  as  separate 
faculties,  the  operations  of  which  it  is  possible  to  separate 
from  one  another ;  and  it  is  true  also  that  in  preaching 
cognition  must  be  subordinated  to  conation,  knowledge  to 
action ;  and  yet  we  may  distinguish  sermons  as  didactic, 
devotional  or  'practical,  according  to  the  emphasis  on  know- 
ledge, emotion  or  action.  In  a  previous  chapter  it  was 
urged  that  it  is  a  one-sided  view  to  insist  that  sermons 
must  be  always  directed  towards  practice,  that  each 
sermon  must  set  a  task  to  be  done.  Just  because  of  the 
unity  of  personality  the  part  may  be  presented  in  a 
sermon,  and  yet  issue  in  the  whole.  Tbe  object  of 
Christian  faith  may  be  presented  to  the  mind  of  the 
^  HomiUtique,  pp.  48-49. 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   THE   SERMON  365 

hearer,  and  yet  if  really  presented  may  touch  the  heart 
and  move  the  will.  Distinct  and  adequate  presentation 
may  be  the  preacher's  object,  and  he  may  leave  these 
other  effects  to  follow  of  themselves.  He  may  also  desire 
to  leave  as  the  result  of  his  preaching  the  mood  of  devotion, 
adoration,  gratitude.  Not  by  the  stimulant  of  excite- 
ment, but  by  the  stimulus  of  inspiration  he  must  seek 
this  end,  and  this  human  inspiration  can  be  only  the 
response  to  the  divine  revelation  presented  in  the  sermon. 
The  presentation  is,  however,  in  this  case  means  and  not 
end.  The  will  cannot  be  moved  to  action  apart  from 
thought  and  feeling ;  but  the  preacher  may  distinctly 
and  decisively  will  that  the  whole  content  of  his  sermon 
shall  be  directed  towards  influencing  the  will  of  his 
hearers.  The  text  chosen  will  in  most  cases  suggest 
where  the  emphasis  should  fall,  or  the  preacher  with  a 
definite  intention  may  seek  out  the  text  that  will  be  most 
appropriate.  While  the  preacher  must  retain  his  freedom 
under  the  Spirit's  guidance,  yet  definiteness  of  intention 
will  be  gain  and  not  loss. 

5.  In  order  to  influence  his  hearers  intellectually, 
morally  or  practically,  the  preacher  must  interest  them; 
in  order  that  he  may  do  this  he  must  discover  what  are 
their  interests :  he  must  pass  from  the  subjective  effect  to 
the  objective  cause.  (1)  "Interest"  says  Vinet,  "a  sub- 
jective and  an  objective  word,  is  in  the  second  sense  the 
property  which  an  object  has  of  drawing  towards  it  our 
thought  and  our  soul,  so  that  a  part,  more  or  less  con- 
siderable, of  our  happiness  depends  on  it.  The  etymology 
{inter  esse),  as  usually,  defines  the  word.  (In  the  subjective 
sense  the  interest  consists  in  an  identification,  more  or  less 
profound  and  durable,  with  an  object  outside  of  us.) "  ^ 
Knowledge  depends  on  selective  interest,  as  we  attend  to, 
and  so  become  familiar  with  what  interests  us ;  the  same 
river  is  not  the  same  for  the  angler  and  the  artist,  because 
the  one  cares  for  fish  the  other  for  scenery.^     His  hearers' 

»  Op.  ciL,  p.  66. 

*  See  Ward's  Naturalism  and  Af/nofiticism,  ii.  p.  131. 


366  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

interests  are  the  points  of  contact  for  the  preacher.  There 
are  many  accidental,  trivial,  and  artificial  interests,  and 
the  preacher  would  degrade  his  office  by  allowing  these 
to  determine  his  choice  of  subject ;  although  he  might  be 
justified  in  his  introduction  to  refer  even  to  such  an 
interest  to  gain  attention  in  order  that  as  quickly  as 
possible  he  might  lead  his  hearers  away  from  and  above  it. 

(2)  There  are  more  permanent  and  universal  interests 
of  man,  which,  if  not  primary  in  the  Christian  Gospel,  are 
consistent  with  it ;  and  may  serve  as  leading  men  to  it. 
(a)  As  God  is  the  Creator,  so  nature  may  lead  to  God, 
The  scientific,  the  aesthetic,  and  the  utilitarian  interests 
of  men  in  nature  are  not  to  be  ignored,  or  neglected  by 
the  preacher,  for  the  divine  wisdom,  the  divine  glory,  and 
the  divine  goodness  may  all  be  disclosed  in  it.^  For 
certain  audiences  it  may  be  necessary  to  deal  with  the 
difficulties  of,  and  the  objections  to,  this  natural  theology. 
To  make  faith  in  God  as  Maker  less  difficult  is  a  task  the 
preacher  need  not  disclaim,  if  he  is  competent  to  discharge 
it.  But  an  ill-formed  or  ineffective  apologetic  is  worse 
than  useless. 

(&)  As  God  is  the  Kuler,  so  history  may  disclose  His 
Providence.^  As  these  sentences  are  being  written  the 
war  of  the  Allied  with  the  Central  Powers  of  Europe  has 
raised  the  problem  of  God's  government  in  human  affairs 
in  a  very  acute  form ;  but  at  all  times  theodicy  claims  a 
place  in  Christian  preaching,  since  evil  and  sin  are  universal 
and  constant  facts  for  mankind.  History  claims  the 
interest  of  men,  and  for  moral  and  religious  instruction 
no  rigid  boundary  need  be  drawn  between  sacred  and 
profane,  as  such  a  distinction  represents  a  superseded 
standpoint  of  thought.  There  was  a  preparation  for  the 
Gospel  in  Greece  and  Rome  no  less  than  in  Judsea ;  there 
is  to-day  a  preparation  for  the  Gospel  in  India,  China, 
Japan.  Human  events  have  divine  significance.  The 
Christian  revelation  is  historical  in  its  character,  not  by 
accident,  but  of  its  very  essence,  for  it  is  not  so  much  a 

>  Cf.  Viuet,  uj).  eit..,  pp.  93-94.  *  Cf.  qp.  cit.,  pp.  90-93. 


THE   CHARACTER   OF  THE   SERMON  367 

divine  word  spoken  as  a  divine  deed  done ;  it  is  not  an 
abstract  illumination,  but  a  concrete  salvation.  The 
greater  part  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  is  historical  record, 
and  even  prophetic  and  apostolic  discourse  can  best  be 
understood  in  its  historical  setting.  Abundant  material 
is  thus  at  the  preacher's  hands  in  addressing  himself  to 
this  common  human  interest  in  history.  He  who  can 
make  the  past  live  in  the  present  by  vivid  description 
and  vigorous  narration,  may  so  capture  the  interest  of 
his  hearers  as  to  bring  them  into  the  presence  of  the 
Living  God  in  history. 

(c)  But  God  is  not  the  sole  actor  in  history;  and 
we  must  recognise  that  many  men  are  more  interested  in 
the  activity  of  their  fellow-men  in  history  than  in  the 
overruling  of  God.  This  interest  to-day  is  not  in  action 
and  its  results  alone,  but  in  personality,  experience, 
character,  the  inner  life  and  growth,  the  progress  or 
deterioration  of  individuals.^  Modern  psychology  and 
modern  imaginative  literature,  which  is  dominated  by 
the  psychological  interest,  are  opening  up  wide  stretches 
of  the  realm  of  the  soul.  By  this  method  the  biographi- 
cal and  autobiographical  material  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
can  be  made  more  intelligible  and  attractive  than  ever 
before.  The  great  masters  of  fiction,  by  their  insight  into 
and  disclosure  of  the  secrets  of  the  soul,  offer  abundant 
illustrations  of  the  teaching  of  the  Gospel  regarding  man, 
his  peril  and  his  promise,  his  degradation  and  his  dignity. 
With  all  reverence  for  His  uniqueness,  we  may  even 
venture  by  this  method  to  make  the  personality  of  Our 
Lord  Himself  more  luminous. 

{d)  By  addressing  these  interests,  in  nature,  history, 
man,  the  Christian  preacher  greatly  widens  the  range  of 
his  preaching ;  but  does  he  not  also  lower  its  authority 
and  weaken  his  appeal  ?  Is  there  not  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment an  exclusive,  almost  intolerant  urgency  regarding 
the  one  thing  needful,  the  good  part  which  shall  not  be 
taken  away  ?  ^  The  treatment  of  such  subjects  as  have 
1  See  Vinet,  o£.  ciL,  pp.  95-98.  »  Lk  10^2. 


368  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

been  mentioned  is  not  to  be  a  substitute  for,  but  sub- 
ordinate to,  and  even  only  a  transition  to  the  supreme 
interests  of  the  Gospel.  In  all,  through  all,  over  all, 
Christ  is  to  be  preached  and  can  be  preached.  Jesus 
Himself  used  nature,  history  and  human  life  to  illustrate 
and  enforce  His  teaching.  A  constant  reiteration  of  a 
plan  of  salvation,  a  theory  of  the  atonement,  an  appeal  for 
conversion  defeats  its  own  purpose :  men  grow  "  Gospel- 
hardened."  The  method  of  indirectness  in  dealing  with 
souls  is  often  more  effective.  "  The  man  of  God  is  to  be 
thoroughly  furnished  unto  all  good  works " ;  and  the 
Church  cannot  confine  itself  to  breathless  evangelisation, 
but  must  seek  to  edify  at  leisure.  These  interests  are 
themselves  legitimate  and  belong  to  the  completeness  of 
the  Christian  personality.  Variety  and  even  novelty  are 
conditions  of  evoking  and  sustaining  the  interests  of 
congregations.  Men  must  be  sought  where  they  are,  and 
brought  by  the  ways  most  open  to  them  to  where 
Christ  is.^ 

(3)  In  the  Gospel  itself  there  are  three  interests,  which 
in  many  hearers  may  have  become  dormant,  but  to  which 
no  soul  is  altogether  insensible,  and  which,  therefore,  the 
preacher  may  by  argument  and  appeal,  hope  to  make  active 
again.  Viuet  mentions  two,  the  dogmatic  and  the  ethical^ 
or  in  God  and  goodness.  It  seems  to  the  writer  that  we 
should  distinguish  a  third,  although  it  might  be  included 
in  the  first  as  God's  gift,  or  the  second  as  the  fruit  of 
goodness ;  this  may  be  described  as  the  personal  interest  in 
immortality.  On  the  one  hand,  this  division  corresponds 
to  Kant's  three  postulates  of  the  practical  reason,  God, 
freedom  and  immortality,  and,  on  the  other,  to  the  three 
Christian  graces,  faith,  love  and  hope.  Surely  the 
questions  of  interest  to  every  man  are :  What  must  I 
believe  ?     What  ought  I  to  do  ?     What  may  I  hope  ? 

(a)  In  dealing  with  these  subjects  the  preacher  must 

1  Cf-Vinut,  op.  cii.,  pp.  98-101. 

2  Op.  ciL,  pp.  74-90.     Cf.  Gbristlieb,  Eomiletic,  pp.  193-203,  and  Hoyt, 
The  Preacher,  pp.  305-348. 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE  SERMON  369 

always  keep  in  mind  the  difference  between  his  interest  in 
these  interests,  and  the  interest  of  his  hearers ;  for  he  and 
they  are  not  in  the  same  way  affected  by  the  common 
objects  of  interest.  As  a  student,  a  scholar,  a  thinker,  his 
interest  is  intellectual,  but  theirs  is  practical ;  he  as  a  man 
shares  their  interest,  but  they  do  not  share  his.  He  seeks 
for  himself  the  unity  of  system ;  that  is  not  their  concern 
at  all.  They  want  counsel,  comfort,  cheer,  help,  guidance 
in  and  for  daily  life  with  its  trials,  struggles,  temptations, 
doubts  and  fears.  Their  individual  interests  may  be 
partial ;  and  it  may  be  his  duty  to  widen  their  outlook,  so 
that  they  may  discover  that  aspects  of  truth,  duty,  promise 
which  seemed  meaningless  for  them  hitherto  have  a  great 
and  an  abiding  worth.  For  the  sake  of  formal  complete- 
ness he  must  not,  however,  force  upon  them  considerations 
altogether  unrelated  to  their  needs  and  aims,  while  striving 
ever  to  lead  them  out  into  a  wider  Christian  thought  and 
life.  General  principles  must  in  preaching  receive  not  so 
much  abstract  exposition  as  concrete  application.  Many 
a  question  intellectually  interesting  to  the  preacher  may 
be  practically  uninteresting  to  his  hearers. 

(&)  The  older  method  of  preaching  in  which  a  system 
of  doctrine  was  presented  in  the  language  of  the  schools  is 
quite  out  of  date.  Theology  and  ethics  alike  must  be 
presented  experimentally  and  untechnically  in  the  language 
of,  not  the  man-in-the-street,  but  of  common  life  among 
cultivated  men  and  women.  There  must  be  individual 
diagnosis  alike  spiritually  and  morally,  so  that  both  the 
disease  may  be  exposed,  and  the  remedy  proposed.  With- 
out encouraging  morbid  introspection  on  the  one  side  or 
casuistic  investigation  on  the  other,  the  preacher  must 
nevertheless  deal  with  human  experience  and  character,  at 
close  quarters,  with  intimate  knowledge,  so  as  to  bring  the 
Gospel  just  where  and  just  as  it  is  needed,  and  can  work 
good.^ 

'  A  great  preacher  has  dealt  with  this  subject.  Henry  Ward  Beecher'a 
Lectures  on  Preaching,  third  series,  contains  a  most  interesting  and  valuable 
discussion  regarding  the  treatment  of  such  themes  in  the  pulpit. 


370  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

6.  The  occasion  may  also  determine  the  purpose  of  a 
sermon.  (1)  In  the  Churches  in  which  there  is  a  lectionary 
giving  due  regard  to  the  Christian  year,  the  preacher  is 
provided  with  the  guidance  he  needs.^  But  even  in  the 
Churches  in  which  the  Christian  year  is  not  recognised,  it 
is  customary  to  observe  Christmas,  Easter,  Whitsuntide  ; 
and  the  preacher  loses  an  opportunity  of  which  he  should 
make  the  most  if  he  does  not  make  these  festivals  the 
occasion  for  presenting  the  great  facts  of  the  Christian 
faith,  the  Incarnation,  the  Death  and  Eesurrection  of 
Christ,  and  the  Descent  of  the  Spirit.  When  Christmas 
Day  itself  is  not  observed  the  Sunday  nearest  the  date 
should  be  marked  by  the  appropriate  services ;  and  when 
Good  Friday  is  not  kept,  at  one  of  the  services  on  Easter 
Sunday,  or  on  the  previous  Palm  Sunday,  the  sacrifice  of 
our  redemption  should  be  proclaimed.  In  days  when  the 
historical  basis  of  the  Christian  faith  is  being  assailed,  it  is 
of  urgent  importance  that  these  facts  should  be  kept 
prominent  in  the  mind  of  the  Christian  Church.  So 
many-sided  are  these  facts,  that  no  preacher  need  ever  be 
at  a  loss  for  a  subject  or  text  suitable  for  the  occasion. 

(2)  It  is  customary  in  many  churches  on  the  Sunday 
nearest  Christmas  to  call  attention  to  the  subject  of  Peace. 
It  will  be  more  than  ever  necessary  for  the  Christian 
Church  to  bear  its  testimony  to  the  Christian  ideal  of  a 
humanity  itself  reconciled  in  its  reconciliation  with  God. 
Discord  and  division  are  not  confined  to  the  relations  of 
nations  to  one  another ;  in  the  family,  industry  and  society 
there  are  antagonisms  to  be  removed  ;  and  the  proclamation 
of  Christ  as  Prince  of  Peace  in  all  human  relations  is 
always  appropriate  at  the  Christmas  season.  With  Whit- 
suntide another  interest  is  often  very  fitly  connected,  the 
unity  of  the  Christian  Church.  Even  if  the  preacher  has 
no  scheme  of  reunion  of  Churches  to  advocate,  it  is  well 
that  the  Christian  believers  should  be  reminded  that  they 
are  members  of  one  body  in  Christ,  that  amid  all  outward 

^  In  Christlieb's  Homiletic  will  be  found  many  suggestions  of  subjects  for 
the  festival  seasons,  pp.  226-274. 


THE  CHARACTER  OF   THE   SERMON  371 

divisions  inwardly  there  is  only  one  Christian  community 
in  earth  and  heaven. 

(3)  These  Christian  festivals  not  only  call  for  the 
appropriate  subjects,  but  might  at  least  sometimes  serve  as 
guides  to  the  preacher  in  the  choice  of  his  themes  for  the 
greater  part  of  the  year.  From  October  till  December  he 
might  let  the  thought  of  the  Lord's  Advent  guide  him,  and 
he  might  give  a  series  of  sermons  on  the  preparation  for 
Christ's  coming  in  the  Old  Testament.  Between  Christ- 
mas and  Easter  he  might  deal  with  the  outstanding  features 
of  the  ministry  of  Our  Lord.  From  Easter  till  Whitsuntide 
the  doctrine  of  His  Person  and  Work  might  be  expounded. 
After  Whitsuntide  the  functions  and  obligations  of  the 
Christian  Church  might  be  discussed.  There  can  be  no 
doubt  that  what  is  needed  by  most  Christians  is  a  more 
comprehensive  and  systematic  knowledge  of  the  common 
beliefs  of  the  Church,  and  the  preacher  should  aim  at 
imparting  such  knowledge. 

(4)  While  the  divisions  of  the  calendar  are  artificial, 
yet  the  last  or  the  first  Sunday  of  the  Year,  whichever  is 
nearest  New  Year's  Day,  offers  a  suitable  occasion  for 
calling  attention  to  the  passage  of  time,  the  changes  in  life 
it  brings  with  it,  the  use  of  remembrance  and  anticipation 
in  the  progress  of  the  soul,  and  the  context  of  eternity  in 
which  God  has  set  the  life  of  man.  A  correspondence 
with  nature  is  to  be  noted,  as  after  the  shortest  day  the 
renewal  of  nature  has  already  begun,  even  if  the  first  signs 
of  its  resurrection  are  not  at  once  observed.  Easter 
Sunday  may  without  any  detraction  from  the  supreme 
importance  of  the  event  it  commemorates  receive  its 
reference  to  nature  also ;  for  then  the  renewal  has 
become  manifest.  That  on  one  Sunday  in  summer  there 
should  be  Flower  Services,  and  on  one  in  Autumn  the 
Harvest  Festival,  is  an  arrangement  which  the  preacher 
may  gladly  welcome.  For  God  is  the  God  of  Nature  as 
well  as  of  Grace ;  and  while  in  some  of  its  aspects  nature 
may  present  problems  which  only  the  confidence  which 
grace  inspires  enables  us  to  bear  unsolved  and  yet  keep 


372  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

faith  in  God,  there  is  also  an  accord  of  Nature  and  Grace, 
as  the  greatest  of  all  Teachers  made  so  clear  in  His  sayings. 
Modem  civilisation  and  culture  remove  most  men  from  the 
constant  and  close  contact  with  nature  which  man  needs 
for  the  wholeness  of  his  life,  and  these  two  occasions  at 
least  should  be  used  to  bring  home  to  human  self-sufficiency 
man's  complete  dependence  on  God  in  nature.  Piety 
would  be  enriched  were  the  religious  significance  of  nature 
fully  recognised  in  the  teaching  of  the  pulpit. 

(5)  There  are  certain  moral  or  religious  interests  which 
are  claiming  notice  in  the  pulpit  on  a  fixed  occasion. 
There  is  a  world-wide  observance  of  Temperance  Sunday 
early  in  November.  While  the  primary  intention  is  to 
call  attention  to  the  vice  of  drunkenness  and  to  the  duty 
of  Total  Abstinence,  the  preacher  may  sometimes  take  a 
wider  outlook,  and  deal  rather  with  general  principle  than 
particular  instance.  Drunkenness  is  one  form  of  self- 
indulgence,  and  total  abstinence  one  form  of  self-control ; 
and  it  is  not  asking  too  much  of  the  preacher  that  once  a 
year  at  least  he  should  call  attention  to  the  peril  of  the 
one  and  the  blessing  of  the  other.  Although  there  is 
more  in  the  Bible  about  the  evils  of  drunkenness  than  at 
first  appears,  and  the  preacher  might  find  many  texts  to 
serve  his  purpose,  yet  it  will  be  well  for  him  generally  to 
take  a  wider  standpoint. 

(6)  Most  denominations  also  have  their  Missionary 
Sunday,  when  either  a  missionary  occupies  the  pulpit  or 
the  minister  himself  is  asked  to  deal  with  the  subject  of 
foreign  missions.  Christianity  is  by  its  character  universal, 
and  it  must  be  in  its  method  missionary ;  and  not  once  a 
year  only  will  the  preacher  who  prizes  its  character 
enforce  its  method.  But  once  a  year  at  least  in  more 
explicit  form  and  with  more  deliberate  intention  should  its 
world-wide  destiny  be  proclaimed.  The  minister  who 
desires  himself  to  understand  the  Gospel  and  to  present 
it  to  others  adequately,  will  not  be  content  to  have  a 
missionary  as  his  substitute  in  the  discharge  of  this  duty. 
If  not  on  Missionary  Sunday  then  on  other  occasions  he 


THE   CHARACTER  OF  THE   SERMON  373 

will  bear  liis  testimony  regarding  this  primary  obligation 
of  the  Christian  Church.  The  grounds  on  which  the 
appeal  for  sympathy  and  support,  service  and  even  sacrifice, 
may  now  be  made  are  different  from  what  they  were  at 
the  beginning  of  the  modern  missionary  era,  but  they  are 
not  less  solid  than  they  were ;  and  even  from  the  stand- 
point of  modern  scholarship  and  knowledge,  the  material 
the  Holy  Scriptures  and  the  history  of  the  Christian 
Church  offer  is  more  abundant  than  ever,  and  its  argimient 
even  more  cogent.^ 

(7)  In  recent  years  an  appeal  has  been  made  in  some 
districts  for  the  observance  of  a  Civic  Sunday ;  and  the 
appeal  should  not  be  lightly  set  aside.  Social  reform  has 
a  place  in  the  thought  and  life  of  to-day  such  as  it  never 
had  before.  The  Churches  have  lost  and  are  losing  influence 
because  many  ministers  have  been  too  indifferent  in  these 
matters.  The  working-classes  are  in  some  parts  of  the 
country  being  estranged  from  the  Christian  Church  because 
they  do  not  find  in  the  pulpit  the  interest  they  themselves 
feel.  It  seems  imperative  that  the  Christian  ideal  should 
be  presented  in  its  corporate  as  well  as  individual  appeal : 
for  modern  conditions  have  proved  the  inadequacy  of 
philanthropy,  and  the  necessity  of  what  has  been  called 
social  politics.^  Many  of  the  worst  evils  can  be  removed 
only  by  the  efforts  of  the  community  as  a  whole.  Again 
it  does  not  seem  to  be  too  much  to  give  at  least  one  day 
in  the  year  to  the  advocacy  of  social  reform.  To  this 
course  two  objections  are  often  offered,  which  must  be  met 
as  briefly  as  can  be.  (a)  It  is  said  that  these  social 
questions  cannot  be  dealt  with  without  political  partisan- 
ship. If  one  party  has  identified  its  interests  with  the 
protection  of  some  monstrous  social  evil,  such  as  the  liquor 
traffic  or  the  opposition  to  some  imperative  social  good, 
such  as  an  improvement  of  the  land  system,  it  is  intoler- 

^  The  writer  has  attempted  in  his  book  on  The  Missionary  Obligation  to 
restate  the  argument  and  appeal. 

^  See  Kirkman  Gray's  History  of  English  Philanthropy,  and  his 
Philanthropy  and  the  State ;  also  Hoyt's  The  Preacher,  pp.  239-256,  and 
CoflBn's  In  a  Day  of  Social  Rebuilding, 


374  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

able  that  those  who,  though  Christiau,  are  pleased  to 
belong  to  it,  should  claim  to  impose  silence  on  the  pulpit. 
The  preacher  must  avoid  partisanship ;  but  he  must  not 
be  charged  with  it  because  in  his  advocacy  of  social 
reform,  he  offends  the  partisanship  of  some  of  his  hearers. 
There  are  some  signs  of  the  times  that  we  may  soon  reach 
a  larger  measure  of  agreement  among  all  men  of  good  will, 
so  that  the  common  good  will  not  be  as  much  as  it  has 
been  the  sport  of  party. 

(6)  Further,  it  is  objected  that  the  preacher  is  not  an 
expert  in  economics  or  politics,  and  that  therefore  he 
abuses  his  position,  if  he  uses  his  authority  to  cover  his 
ignorance  and  incompetence.  It  may  be  admitted  that 
Social  Problems  cannot  be  solved  without  expert  know- 
ledge. But  the  preacher  can  make  himself  acquainted 
with  the  conclusions  of  experts,  and  he  can  then  exercise 
his  judgment,  trained  in  other  studies,  upon  these.  The 
work  of  the  experts  has  been  done,  when  a  Social  Eeform 
becomes  practical  politics,  and  in  giving  his  support  to 
measures  which  the  knowledge  of  experts  justifies,  the 
preacher  does  not  abuse  his  authority.  Still  more,  the 
main  function  of  the  pulpit  in  this  connection  is  not  so 
much  to  advocate  reforms,  although  it  may  do  this  even, 
as  to  set  forth  the  Christian  ideal  of  brotherhood  as 
standard  and  motive  of  all  social  reforms.  The  prophets 
show  in  their  teaching  that  social  morality  and  genuine 
religion  are  inseparable ;  and  the  teaching  of  Jesus  and 
the  life  of  the  Apostolic  Church  contain  abundant  material 
for  the  preacher  who  wants  to  show  his  hearers  how  each 
may  love  his  neighbour  as  himself. 

(8)  Most  Churches  have  their  Sunday-school  Anniver- 
sary or  Children's  Day.  There  is  often  a  Children's 
Service  at  which  the  preacher  addresses  himself  to  the 
children.  But  the  question  arises,  what  use  is  to  be  made 
of  this  morning  and  evening  service  ?  Many  preachers,  to 
draw  a  conclusion  from  such  information  as  the  writer  has 
been  able  to  gather,  make  no  attempt  to  take  appro- 
priate subjects,  but  preach  sermons  which  might  be  given 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   THE   SERMON  375 

on  any  Sunday  in  the  year.  The  interests  of  the  young 
life  are  so  important,  that  this  seems  to  be  a  neglect  of 
duty.  The  place  of  the  child  in,  and  the  claim  of  the 
child  on,  the  Church  should  in  some  form  or  other  be  pre- 
sented at  these  services.  In  view  of  the  present  con- 
ditions which  imperil  the  Christian  home,  it  does  seem 
fitting  and  useful  to  address  Christian  parents  on  their 
privileges  and  obligations  at  one  of  the  services.  The 
failure  of  the  Sunday  school  to  retain  its  older  scholars, 
and  to  pass  them  on  into  the  membership  of  the  Church 
on  the  one  hand,  and  the  progress  in  Sunday-school 
methods  now  possible  on  the  other,  suggest  themes  for 
the  other  service.  For  a  number  of  years  the  writer 
addressed  parents  in  the  morning,  children  in  the  after- 
noon, and  teachers  in  the  evening,  and  never  found  dearth 
of  material ;  and  it  is  a  proceeding  which,  as  practicable, 
he  would  venture  to  recommend  to  others. 

(9)  Within  the  last  few  years  the  Student  Christian 
movement  has  also  made  an  appeal,  that  on  one  Sunday 
in  the  year  reference  should  be  made  to  the  peril  and  the 
promise  of  the  youths  and  maidens  in  universities  and 
colleges.  The  writer  does  not  suggest  that  the  preacher 
should  make  a  practice  of  once  a  year  dealing  with  this 
subject ;  but  he  does  say  that  the  subject  of  education  in 
the  widest  sense  is  important  enough  for  occasional  treat- 
ment in  the  pulpit.  The  advocacy  of  as  accessible,  as 
co-ordinated  and  as  complete  a  system  of  public  education 
as  possible  does  not  seem  to  him  at  all  out  of  place  in  the 
Christian  Church. 

(10)  In  some  churches  it  is  the  practice  to  hold  a 
church  anniversary  and  a  pastor's  anniversary.  On  these 
occasions  many  preachers  make  no  attempt  to  take  an 
appropriate  subject,  and  yet  surely  the  Christian  ideal  of 
the  Church  and  of  the  Ministry  is  well  worth  recalling 
both  for  reproof  and  encouragement ;  and  the  New  Testa- 
ment deals  with  this  subject  so  frequently  and  so  variedly 
that  there  need  never  be  a  want  of  matter.  The  conception 
both   of    the   Church   and   the   Ministry   is   among   many 


376  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Christians  so  much  lowered,  that  the  opportunity  should 
not  be  lost  to  correct  the  error  by  the  teaching  of  the 
Bible.  A  preacher  will  find  his  own  sense  of  his  calling 
deepened  if  he  will  endeavour  to  gather  together  what  the 
New  Testament  has  to  say  about  the  Church  and  the  place 
of  the  ministry  in  it ;  and  if  he  succeeds  in  his  object  in 
conveying  to  his  people  that  teaching,  his  relation  to  them 
will  be  cleansed  and  hallowed.  For  this  reason  even  if  it 
be  not  the  practice  of  the  Church  to  hold  an  anniversary, 
the  pastor  will  do  well  to  set  apart  for  himself,  whether  he 
intimate  it  to  his  people  or  not,  a  Sunday  when  he  will 
examine  himself  and  help  them  to  examine  themselves 
regarding  his  and  their  high  and  holy  calling  in  Christ 
Jesus.  The  tendency  to  turn  the  preacher  into  the  orator, 
and  the  Church  into  the  audience,  can  be  arrested  only  by 
a  recovery  of  the  blessed  and  fruitful  pastoral  relationship, 
and  to  this  end  the  pulpit  can  make  its  contribution  in  this 
way.  On  such  an  occasion,  too,  an  appeal  might  be  made 
to  the  youths  and  young  men  to  consider  seriously  the 
claims  of  the  Christian  ministry  as  a  life  calling. 

(11)  A  protest  is  frequently  made  against  the  multi- 
plication of  such  special  occasions,  and  certainly  the  appeals 
are  often  trivial  enough.  An  Anti-Nicotine  Sunday  would 
be  an  absurdity,  although  in  a  sermon  on  Temperance 
excessive  smoking  might  be  rebuked.  While  a  sermon 
might  be  preached  very  profitably  on  Kindness  to  Animals, 
such  a  subject  can  scarcely  be  made  an  annual  fixtura 
The  occasions  which  have  been  mentioned,  however,  seem 
to  the  writer  rightfully  to  claim  a  place  in  the  Church's 
calendar.  Both  services  need  not  be  dedicated  to  the  same 
subject,  except  on  the  Christian  festivals.  If  to  deal  with 
them  it  were  necessary  for  the  preacher  to  abandon  the 
preaching  of  the  Gospel,  the  writer  would  not  have  a  single 
word  to  say  in  their  support.  But  in  dealing  with  them 
the  preacher  should  be  preaching  the  Gospel  in  its  manifold 
applications  to  the  faith  and  duty  of  man.  For  Christ  is 
to  the  Church  wisdom  and  righteousness,  truth  and  grace, 
in  all  the  varied  relations  and  all  the  varying  interests  of 


THE   CHARACTER  OF   THE   SERMON  377 

the  life  of  mankind.  The  preacher  should  touch  no  subject, 
however  much  it  may  be  pressed  on  his  notice  or  appeal 
to  his  interest,  that  he  cannot  bring  into  captivity  to  Christ, 
and  he  need  refuse  no  theme,  in  dealing  with  which  he  is 
able  to  set  forth  the  length  and  breadth,  the  depth  and 
height  of  the  divine  revelation  and  human  redemption  in 
Him.  As  he  is  Christ's  and  Christ  God's,  so  all  things 
are  his.^ 

(12)  Christlieb  has  a  section  ^  dealing  with  "  the  events 
and  Church  needs  of  the  individual  Christian  life  (occasional 
addresses),"  to  which  church  customs  in  Germany  give  a 
prominence  that  is  not  generally  given  to  them  in  Great 
Britain.  At  a  baptism,  or  marriage,  or  a  funeral,  it  is  not 
usual  to  deliver  a  long  address ;  when  such  is  given  the 
significance  of  the  ordinance  in  the  first  two  cases,  and  the 
obligations  it  imposes,  should  be  simply  and  shortly  stated ; 
in  the  last  case  an  estimate  of  character,  which  should 
never  exceed  the  bounds  of  truth,  and  be  controlled  by 
delicacy  of  feeling,  should  be  subordinated  to  the  declara- 
tion of  the  Christian  hope  with  the  comfort  for  the  mourners 
which  it  can  bring.  The  confirmation  address  has  no  place 
in  the  Churches  which  do  not  observe  this  ordinance ;  and 
yet  it  would  be  well,  if  when  a  number  of  young  persons 
are  being  welcomed  to  the  fellowship  of  faith,  the  privileges 
and  duties  of  this  sacred  relationship  were  set  fortL 
"When  the  ordinance  of  the  Lord's  Supper  is  being  observed, 
a  preparatory  address  may  be  commended.  While  there 
must  be  a  call  to  self-examination  and  self -dedication, 
penitence  and  faith,  what  man  should  do  must  not  be  as 
prominent  as  what  God  has  done  in  "  all  our  redemption 
cost — all  our  redemption  won." 

1  1  Co  322-  23. 

»  Op.  cit.,  pp.  291-807;  of.  Bassermann,  op.  cit.,  pp.  440-452. 


CHAPTER    II. 

THE  CHOICE  OF  SUBJECTS   AND  TEXTS. 

1.  Several  references  have  already  been  made  to  the 
common  Christian  practice  of  attaching  a  sermon  to  a  text, 
and  reasons  suggested  for  the  continuance  of  the  practice. 
Vinet  ^  discusses  the  question  more  fully  than  most  writers 
in  Homiletics,  who  usually  take  the  custom  for  granted. 
In  dealing  first  with  the  subject,  setting  aside  the  text,  the 
writer  has  made  it  clear  that  he  does  not  regard  a  text  as 
essential  to  the  sermon,  and  in  fact  it  is  not.  What 
makes  a  sermon  Christian  is  not  the  employment  of  a 
text,  but  the  spirit  of  the  preacher.  (1)  A  sermon  may 
be  Christian  without  a  text,  and  may  under  a  text  conceal 
its  un-Cbristian  character.  Subject  and  text  may  be 
forced  into  an  unnatural  alliance.  Not  every  text  contains 
a  subject  for  a  sermon,  and  some  texts  contain  several 
subjects.  Sometimes  the  text  does  not  contain  all  the 
subject,  and  sometimes  a  great  deal  more  than  the  subject. 
Why  not  abandon  the  text,  and  let  the  preacher  fall  back 
on  his  growing  experience  as  well  as  the  Bible  ?  Thus 
the  preacher  would  be  freed  from  either  bondage  to  his 
text  in  treating  his  subject  or  doing  violence  to  his  text 
for  the  sake  of  his  subject. 

(2)  While  recognising  the  force  of  all  these  considera- 
tions, Vinet  nevertheless  decides  in  favour  of  the  use  of 
the  text  for  the  following  reasons :  (a)  the  consecration  of 
this  method  by  universal  and  permanent  custom  in  the 
Church,  and  the  offence  which  would  be  given  by  its 
abandonment ;  (h)  the  indication  the  text  gives  that  the 
preacher  is  the  Servant  of  the  Word  of  God  ;  (c)  the  real 
1  HomiUtique,  pp.  102-114.     Cf.  Christlieb,  pp.  135-160. 

378 


THE   CHOICE   OF   SUBJECTS  AND   TEXTS        379 

advantages  it  offers ;  it  is  a  moral  benefit  to  the  preacher 
that  he  must  attach  his  sermon  to  a  text ;  it  inspires  the 
respect  of  the  hearer  to  listen  to  a  saying  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures  at  the  very  beginning  of  the  sermon ;  generally 
a  sermon  developed  out  of  a  text  will  be  better  than  one 
resting  on  an  abstract  subject;  and  for  most  preachers 
texts  suggest  subjects,  and  so  give  greater  variety  to  their 
preaching. 

(3)  Having  reached  this  conclusion,  he  shows  that  the 
difficulties  are  in  theory  greater  than  in  practice.  Three 
cases  have  to  be  considered.  It  often  happens  that  text 
and  subject  exactly  correspond,  and  no  difficulty  is  felt. 
If  the  preacher  has  been  led  to  a  subject,  for  which  he 
cannot  find  a  text  which  quite  fits  it ;  yet  if  it  be  a 
subject,  Christian  in  character  and  intention,  it  will  not  be 
impossible  to  find  a  connection  between  it  and  a  text. 
The  subject  may  be  the  genus,  of  which  the  text  offers  the 
species,  or  vice  versa.  The  text  may  be  the  concrete 
instance  and  the  subject  the  abstract  principle.  The  text 
may  be  a  general  statement,  of  which  the  subject  offers  a 
particular  application.  Peter's  refusal  to  let  Jesus  wash 
his  feet  illustrates  false  independence.  The  words  about 
love  as  the  fulfilment  of  law  may  be  applied  in  commend- 
ing total  abstinence.  (At  a  later  stage  the  connection  of 
text  and  subject  will  be  treated  in  detail.)  If  the  preacher 
is  familiar  with  his  Bible,  texts  will  suggest  subjects,  and 
without  any  violence  the  one  will  as  it  were  grow  out  of 
the  other. 

2.  The  use  of  a  text,  however,  imposes  an  obligation 
not  to  handle  the  Word  of  God  deceitfully.^  The  preacher 
must  see  to  it  that  his  subject  is  congruous  with  his  text, 
and  that  the  text  justifies  the  treatment  which  he  gives  to 
his  subject.  He  must  not  claim  the  authority  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures  for  his  individual  opinions  and  even  for  his 
private  interpretations.  Several  rules  may  be  laid  down 
for  the  preacher's  guidance  and  warning.  (1)  We  cannot 
now  treat  the  whole  Bible  as  a  text-book  of  theology  and 

1  2  Co  4'. 


380  THE  CHRISTIAN  TREACHER 

ethics ;  but  within  the  Bible  must  recognise  differences  of 
inspiration  and  degrees  of  authority.  We  must  not  deal 
with  an  utterance  of  Job  in  his  sore  bewilderment  of  soul 
as  conveying  the  mind  of  God  as  adequately  and  directly 
as  a  saying  of  Jesus.  The  subjective  feeling  of  a  psalmist 
regarding  his  relation  to  God  does  not  correspond  accurately 
with  the  objective  fact  of  God's  relation  to  him.  The 
details  of  a  parable  are  not  the  contents  of  a  creed  or  a 
code.  One  link  in  a  chain  of  argument  is  not  to  be  made 
the  foundation  of  a  doctrine.  It  is  the  Word  of  God,  the 
Gospel  of  grace  in  the  Bible,  of  which  the  preacher  must 
lay  hold  for  himself  and  set  forth  to  others. 

(2)  But  even  here  it  would  not  correspond  with  the 
genuinely  Christian  faith,  which  knows  not  the  bondage  of 
the  letter,  but  lives  in  the  freedom  of  the  Spirit,  to  make 
any  attempt  to  impose  even  the  Word  of  God  and  the 
Gospel  of  grace  by  authority  merely  without  commending 
it  to  the  reason  and  the  conscience.  The  authority  of 
Christ  is  a  reasonable  and  righteous  authority ;  it  is  not 
outward  compulsion  but  inward  constraint ;  it  claims 
the  intelligent  assent  and  the  voluntary  consent  of  man. 
The  preacher  must  not  try  to  cover  his  incapacity  to 
appeal  to  reason  and  conscience  by  quoting  Scripture 
dogmatically.  The  reverence  for  the  Holy  Scriptures  which 
the  Christian  congregation  cherishes,  and  which  gives 
speaker  and  hearers  a  common  ground,  must  not  be 
abused,  but  used  with  respect  for  the  reason  and  conscience 
of  both.  It  is  the  preacher's  business  so  to  present  his 
subject  in  expounding  his  text  that  the  acceptance  of  his 
message  will  be  intelligent  and  righteous. 

(3)  In  a  Church  in  which  the  Apocryphal  writings  are 
not  accepted  as  canonical,  a  text  from  these  writings  would 
be  out  of  place,  and  would  not  serve  the  purpose  for  which 
a  text  is  chosen.  But  it  would  be  equally  an  abuse  of  the 
confidence  of  a  congregation  for  a  preacher  to  take  his  text 
from  the  Authorised  Version,  if  either  the  reading  or  the 
rendering  is  doubtful.  To  take  a  verse  out  of  the  passage 
in  Mark's  Gospel  (IG^^o)  which  is  by  evidence  of  the  MSS 


THE   CHOICE   OF   SUBJECTS  AND   TEXTS        381 

proved  not  to  be  an  original  part  of  it,  but  a  later  addition 
of  doubtful  origin,  in  order  to  preach  about  the  evidence  of 
the    Eesurrection  or   the  last  charge  of    the  Eisen  Lord, 
would  be  simply  dishonest.     Not  less  so  would  be  the  use 
of  1  Jn   5^  to  prove  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  as  that 
verse    is    very    generally    recognised   as    spurious    and    is 
omitted  in  the  E.V.     To  take  advantage  of  the  mistransla- 
tion in    Ac    26^^  "Almost  thou    persuadest  me    to    be  a 
Christian  "  to  represent  Agrippa  as  a  type  of  the  anxious 
inquirer,  or  to  expound  the  beginnings  of  the  Christian  life, 
would  be  no  less  blameworthy.     A  variant  reading  as  in 
Eo  12^^  in  which  the  last  clause  runs  either  serving  the 
Lord    or  serving  the  opportunity  (E.V.marg.)    might    quite 
legitimately,  with  due  explanation,  be  used  as  suggesting 
the  connection  between  the  service  of  God  and  the  best 
use    of    our    time.      When    differences    of    rendering    are 
warranted  by  the  original  text,  the  thought  of  the  hearers 
may  be  enriched  by  calling  their  attention  to  the  variations 
of  meaning,  and  the  preacher  may  find  useful  material  for 
his  sermon  in  giving  his  reasons  for  preferring  the  one  or 
the  other  rendering.     What  must  be  required  is  absolute  can- 
dour ;  the  preacher  must  not  snatch  any  advantage  from  the 
ignorance  of  his  hearers  regarding  readings  and  renderings. 
(4)  There  are  many  cases  in  which  the  same  words 
may  bear  different  interpretations  apart  from  or  in  their 
context.     The  practice  of  the  apostolic  writers  in  dealing 
with  the  Old  Testament  cannot  here  be  our  guide,  as  in 
their  quotations  they  pay  no  regard  to  the  context.     Thus 
Matthew's  quotation  from  Hos  11^  in  2^  "Out  of  Egypt 
have  I  called  my  son,"  applies  to  Jesus  what  is  written  of 
the  exodus  of  Israel  from  Egypt.     "  Ephraim  is  a  cake  not 
turned,"^    dealt    with  by  itself,  does  suggest  a  one-sided 
development  of  human  character,  as  it  seems  to  describe  a 
cake  cooked  too  much  on  one  side  and  too  little  on  the 
other.       But    the    context    shows    another  meaning,  i.e., 
Ephraim,  because  not  snatched  from  the  fires  of  judgment 
by  God's  mercy,  will  be  destroyed,  as  the  cake  is  burned 

1  Hos  7". 


382  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

which  is  allowed  to  remain  on  the  hot  oven.  The  preacher 
must  not  ask  himself :  What  meaning  can  I  impose  on  the 
text  ?  but :  What  meaning  did  the  writer  or  the  speaker 
intend  ?  Whatever  excuse  there  might  be  for  preachers  of 
former  times,  the  preacher  of  to-day  is  without  excuse  if 
he  does  not  follow  the  historical  interpretation  of  the  text ; 
and  this  involves  a  study  of  the  literary  character  of  the 
writing  with  which  he  is  dealing  (prose  or  poetry,  history 
or  parable,  reflective  or  devotional  literature,  prophecy  or 
apocalyptic),  the  purpose,  occasion,  date,  authorship,  etc.,  of 
the  writing,  and  where  that  is  ascertainable,  the  personal 
characteristics  of  the  writer.  Exegesis  with  literary  and 
historical  criticism  is  a  labour  which  the  preacher  must  be 
ready  to  undergo,  in  order  that  he  may  lawfully  and  not 
unlawfully  use  his  text  in  accordance  with  what  it  does 
mean,  and  not  what  he  thinks  it  may  mean,  or  wishes  it 
to  mean.^ 

3.  If  the  sermon  should  begin  with  a  text,  and  should 
attach  itself  to  the  historical  interpretation  of  the  text, 
two  questions  arise :  How  shall  the  preacher  find  the  appro- 
priate text  ?  and.  What  connections  between  the  sermon 
and  the  text  does  the  historical  interpretation  afford  or 
permit  ?  In  the  preceding  pages  it  has  been  assumed  that 
the  unity  of  the  sermon  is  secured  rather  by  the  presenta- 
tion of  a  subject  than  the  exposition  of  a  text,  although  in 
many  cases  there  is  so  close  a  correspondence  between 
subject  and  text  that  the  presentation  of  the  one  can  be 
best  secured  by  the  exposition  of  the  other.  We  must 
recognise,  however,  that  for  the  preacher  who  is  more  at 
home  in  his  Bible  than  in  any  other  realm  of  knowledge 
and  understanding,  the  more  common  experience  will  be 
that  he  finds  a  text  before  he  thinks  of  a  subject.  Ee- 
serving  at  present  the  other  case  where  a  subject  is  first 
thought  of  and  then  a  text  for  it  desired,  we  may  now 
confine  ourselves  to  this  case.  (1)  Is  the  finding  of  a  text 
an  accident,  a  providence,  an  inspiration?     It  has  some- 

^  The  writer  has  devoted  a  section  of  his  book,  A  Guide  to  Preachers,  to 
answer  the  question — How  to  Sludij  the  Bible  ?  pp.  7-103. 


THE   CHOICE   OF   SUBJECTS  AND   TEXTS        383 

times  been  assumed  that  the  preacher  should  wait  till  God 
gives  him  a  text.  A  text,  as  it  were,  strikes  him  suddenly; 
it  lays  hold  on  him ;  it  will  not  let  him  go  till  he  preaches 
on  it ;  and  till  he  has  dealt  with  it  no  other  can  claim  his 
attention.  Every  man  who  has  any  belief  in  the  guiding 
hand  of  God,  and  is  ever  seeking  to  be  guided,  must  have 
had  such  an  experience.  The  writer  himself  on  one  or 
two  occasions  has  been  compelled  to  change  text  and 
subject  even  in  the  pulpit ;  he  found  himself  unable  to 
deliver  the  sermon  he  had  prepared,  and  compelled  to 
deliver  a  message  which  took  possession  of  him  to  the 
exclusion  of  any  other.  This  he  must  add,  that  the  subject 
which  thus  laid  hold  on  him  was  one  on  which  he  had 
meditated  much,  for  the  treatment  of  which  the  material 
was  already  present  in  his  mind  as  it  were  in  solution, 
needing  only  the  insertion  of  the  text  for  its  precipitation. 
There  may  be  some  preachers  for  whom  this  waiting  upon 
God  for  a  text  appears  a  necessity,  and  whose  experience 
justifies  this  practice,  but  it  is  to  be  feared  that  many  men 
who  are  not  living  on  the  highest  levels  of  meditation  and 
communion  more  often  get  their  texts  by  accident,  a  chance 
suggestion,  a  trivial  association,  or  even  have  to  choose 
some  text  out  of  sheer  necessity  because  they  cannot  delay 
the  choice  any  longer.^ 

(2)  The  writer  is  convinced  that  for  most  men  the 
better  and  wiser  course  is  to  exercise  some  foresight,  even 
to  follow  some  system.  The  preacher  should  be  a  constant 
and  diligent  student  of  the  Bible,  studying  it  with  the  best 
aids  modem  scholarship  can  offer,  and  studying  it  dis- 
interestedly that  he  may  fully  know  and  truly  understand 
it,  and  not  merely  that  he  may  find  in  it  texts  and  material 
for  sermons.  But  there  is  no  need  that  as  a  scholar  he 
should  divest  himself  of  his  interest  as  a  preacher ;  and  he 
need  not  be  less  accurate  as  a  scholar  because  the  Bible 
has  for  him  the  value  not  of  human  literature  alone,  but  of 
the  channel  through  which  God  gives  him  his  message  to 

^  A  passage  in  which  this  method  is  ridiculed  may  be  referred  to  in 
"Watson's  The  Cure  of  Souls,  pp.  5-7. 


384  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

deliver  to  men.  In  his  study  a  number  of  texts  will  be 
suggested  to  him,  and  suggested  for  their  proper  use,  as  he 
comes  to  them  in  their  context,  and  so  runs  no  risk  of 
imposing  an  artificial  sense  arbitrarily  upon  them.  It  will 
be  no  adventitious  quality  of  strangeness  or  picturesqueness 
or  dramatic  force  that  will  arrest  his  attention,  but  their 
inherent  value  as  focusing  the  truth  taught  in  the  whole 
context.  It  wiL  be  not  the  outward  appearance,  as  it  were, 
but  the  inward  reality  of  the  text  that  will  determine  his 
choice.  If  he  goes  systematically  through  the  Bible,^ 
although,  of  course,  all  parts  are  not  equally  fruitful  for  the 
preacher,  selecting  the  pregnant  texts  which  can  bring  to 
the  birth  of  his  sermon  the  fairest  and  noblest  offspring  of 
the  Word  of  God,  he  will  have  a  selection  of  texts  at  his 
disposal  which  will  present  not  fragmentarily  and  dispro- 
portionately, but  with  some  approach  to  adequacy,  the 
contents  of  the  Divine  Eevelation. 

(3)  But  even  if  he  has  this  store  of  texts,  how  shall  he 
use  it  ?  The  purpose  or  the  occasion  of  his  sermon  may 
limit  the  range  of  his  choice.  His  personal  preference 
may  draw  him  so  strongly  to  one  text  rather  than  another 
that  he  may  regard  this  as  an  indication  that  his  medita- 
tion, his  disposition,  or  his  aspiration  at  the  time  qualify 
him  to  deal  with  it  with  clearer  understanding,  deeper 
feeling,  or  more  steadfast  purpose  than  with  any  other. 
The  necessities  of  his  congregation  must  also  be  present 
with  him.  There  may  be  circumstances  important  and 
urgent  enough  to  have  influence  on  his  choice.  But  allow- 
ing for  all  these  special  motives,  the  writer  still  holds  that 
there  may  be  system  in  determining  the  choice  out  of  this 
store  of  texts.  It  is  to  be  feared  that  many  congregations 
to-day  are  impatient  of  continuous  instruction ;  and  it  is 
not  necessary  for  the  preacher  to  intimate  his  intentions,  if 
such  an  intimation  is  undesirable.  He  may  have  a  definite 
plan  in  his  own  mind,  and  his  hearers,  although  they  know 
it  not,  will  get  the  benefit  of  a  method,  against  which  they 

*  This  method  is  recommended  by  one  of  the  greatest  preachers  of  to-day, 
Dr.  Jowett,  The  Preacher:  his  Life  and  Work,  pp.  120-122. 


THE   CHOICE  OF  SUBJECTS  AND   TEXTS        385 

have  only  a  foolish  prejudice.  To  give  a  few  instances,  he 
may  take  a  characteristic  utterance  from  each  of  the 
prophets,  and  may  present  these  oracles  in  such  an  order 
as  will  reproduce  the  progress  of  the  divine  revelation ;  he 
may  deal  with  sayings  of  Jesus  so  as  to  convey  the  main 
features  of  His  religious  and  moral  teaching ;  he  may  take 
Paul's  autobiographical  references  in  his  Epistles  so  as  to 
exhibit  his  Christian  experience.  The  sermons  in  such  a 
series  need  not  be  given  on  successive  Sundays,  but  may  be 
given  once  a  month. ^  The  preacher  may  reserve  himself 
freedom  to  take  up  any  other  topics  at  any  time ;  and  yet 
such  a  plan  in  his  own  mind  will  save  him  a  great  deal  of 
wasted  time  and  toil  in  trying  to  find  texts,  and  will  benefit 
himself  as  well  as  his  hearers. 

4.  We  may  now  turn  to  the  other  case  where  the 
preacher  starts  with  the  subject.  (1)  Here  again  occasion, 
purpose  or  personal  preference  may  lead  him  to  determine 
on  treating  a  subject.  Only  in  very  exceptional  cases  can 
the  subject  be  such  as  not  to  allow  the  ready  and  easy 
choice  of  an  appropriate  text.  The  more  familiar  the 
preacher  is  with  his  Bible,  the  greater  his  command  over 
such  a  store  of  texts  as  has  just  been  spoken  of,  the  less 
difficulty  he  will  meet,  and  the  more  success  he  will  get 
in  his  endeavour  to  join  together  fitly  subject  and  text, 
(a)  The  connection  may  be  very  varied  in  different  cases. 
Does  he  wish  to  deal  with  the  question  of  theatre-going, 
card-playing,  dancing  or  any  amusement  ?  Paul  lays  down 
the  principle,  "  Whatsoever  is  not  of  faith  is  sin,"  ^  and  the 
preacher  may  show  the  application  of  the  principle  in  each 
case.  Whatever  injures  the  Christian's  personal  relation 
to  Christ  as  Saviour  and  Lord  is  unlawful  for  him ;  what- 
ever furthers  that  relation  is  lawful.  Does  the  preacher 
desire  to  deal  with  the  burdens  which  human  relationships 
and  social  arrangements  impose,  which  cannot  be  regarded 
as  personal  duty,  and  yet  in   the  cheerful  acceptance  of 

1  The  writer,  when  pastor  of  a  church,  io  the  summer  vacation,  planned 
his  work  for  the  following  year,  and  for  himself  found  benefit  in  the  method. 

2  Ro  U-^. 


386  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

which  there  comes  blessing?  May  he  not  turn  to  the 
story  of  Simon  of  Cyrene,  who  was  compelled  to  bear  the 
Cross  with  Jesus,  whose  name  is  now  remembered  for  this 
enforced  service  wherever  the  Gospel  is  preached,  and  to 
whose  home  a  blessing  seems  to  have  come  also,  if  the  sons 
are  mentioned  by  Mark  as  fellow-believers  ?  ^  In  the  one 
case  the  reasoning  is  deductive  from  the  general  principle 
to  the  particular  instance;  in  the  othef  inductive  or  vice 
versd.  For  the  enforcement  of  the  duty  of  total  abstinence 
in  view  of  the  evils  of  intemperance,  direct  appeal  may  be 
made  to  the  teaching  both  of  Jesus  ^  and  of  Paul  ^  regard- 
ing "  offence."  The  mutual  toleration  of  the  "  conservative  " 
and  the  "  liberal "  members  of  the  Christian  Church  might 
legitimately  be  enforced  on  the  ground  of  Paul's  teaching 
about  the  "  weak  "  and  the  "  strong  "  in  Eomans  1 4,  even 
although  the  difference  was  practical  and  not  doctrinal,  as 
these  are  co-ordinate  particular  instances  which  can  easily 
be  brought  under  the  general  principles  of  individual  liberty 
and  mutual  responsibility  as  reciprocally  defining  and 
limiting  each  other. 

(b)  Reasoning  from  analogy  is  here  very  helpful.  If 
the  preacher  desires  to  warn  against  the  peril  of  lowering 
the  Christian  ideal  in  a  time  of  war,  he  may  take  as  the 
basis  of  his  sermon  the  137th  Psalm  as  presenting  in  the 
condition  of  the  exiles  in  Babylon  a  sufficient  resemblance 
to  warrant  such  an  argument.  It  will  be  quite  legitimate 
for  a  preacher,  who  desired  to  discuss  the  steps  to  be  taken 
to  delay  and  prevent  war,  to  deal  with  Jesus'  instructions 
regarding  the  treatment  of  an  offending  brother  in  detail,* 
suggesting  the  counterparts  of  diplomatic  remonstrance, 
arbitration  and  cessation  of  diplomatic  relations  with  the 
offending  nation  by  other  nations,  parties  to  the  agreement. 

(c)  The  subject  may  connect  itself  with  what  in  the 
text  is  subordinate  relatively  to  the  context,  and  yet  may 
be  of  primary  importance  as  regards  the  subject.  Thus  in 
Jn  12^2  t;he  necessity  of  the  death  of  Christ  is  the  pro- 

1  Mk  1521.  2  Mt  lS«-i». 

*  1  Co  10^2.  4  lit  1813-". 


THE   CHOICE   OF  SUBJECTS   AND   TEXTS        387 

minent  thought  relatively  to  the  general  principle  laid 
down  in  the  figurative  saying  of  verse  ^*.  But  the 
preacher  may  lay'  hold  of  the  idea  of  Jesus'  universal 
attractiveness  in  order  to  preach  a  missionary  sermon,  and 
His  sacrificial  love  may  be  brought  in  as  a  subordinate 
thought,  as  one  of  the  reasons  for  the  universal  attractive- 
ness. But  it  would  be  only  right  in  this  case  that  the 
preacher'should  state  what  the  primary  idea  of  his  text  is, 
and  should  show  reason  why  he  takes  the  subsidiary  idea 
as  his  subject.  Again,  the  subject  may  allow  for  the  treat- 
ment of  only  part  of  the  text,  and  not  of  the  whole,  as  in 
the  above  instance,  where  the  proof  of  the  necessity  of  the 
death  of  Christ  is  what  the  text  itself  calls  for ;  in  such  a 
case  the  partial  treatment  of  the  text  is  justified  only  if  its 
incompleteness  is  frankly  stated.  If  a  preacher  could  not 
honestly  preach  the  necessity  of  Christ's  death,  to  the 
writer  at  least  it  seems  that  he  would  have  no  right  to  use 
this  text  without  confessing  his  inability.  But  we  must 
claim  for  the  preacher  freedom  to  treat  his  text  incom- 
pletely in  accordance  with  the  limits  imposed  by  his  subject, 
so  long  as  the  incompleteness  is  clearly  stated,  and  in  the 
Introduction  the  text  is  briefly  explained  as  a  whole. 

(d)  It  may  not  be  by  any  recognised  process  of  reason- 
ing that  a  text  and  a  subject  are  related,  although  it  will 
be  well  for  the  preacher  as  a  rule  to  avoid  connecting  a 
subject  with  a  text  unless  he  can  show  such  a  process,  if 
not  explicitly  to  his  hearers,  yet  at  least  to  himself.  There 
may  be  a  connection  that  comes  under  the  more  general 
term  of  suggestion.  If  a  man  has  a  fanciful,  wayward 
mind,  if  he  is  imperfectly  instructed  in  the  Holy  Scriptures 
and  Christian  truth,  it  will  be  at  his  peril  that  he  will 
follow  the  suggestions  of  his  text,  for  as  a  rule  they  will 
be  "  will-o'-the-wisps  "  leading  him  into  a  mental  bog.  But 
if  a  man  has  adequate  knowledge  and  disciplined  judgment, 
suggestion,  even  when  it  cannot  be  reduced  to  rigid  logical 
form,  may  be  a  helpful  guide.  The  details  of  the  parables 
of  Jesus,  for  instance,  should  not  be  allegorised ;  and  yet 
they    are    often    very    suggestive ;    and    it    would    be    an 


388  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

unnecessary  restriction  of  the  liberty  of  the  preacher  never 
to  allow  him  to  use  what  these  details  suggest.  The 
parable  of  the  Prodigal  Son  (to  use  the  common  designa- 
tion) is  not  intended  to  be  a  complete  system  of  theology, 
and  yet  it  suggests  the  answer  to  a  number  of  important 
questions  regarding  God,  man,  sin,  judgment,  penitence, 
pardon,  etc.,  and  it  would  be  ridiculous  to  forbid  a  preacher's 
use  of  it  in  this  way  !  ^  In  this  case  perhaps  the  principle  of 
analogy  offers  some  sanction  ;  but  even  if  it  did  not,  sugges- 
tion, so  long  as  it  is  given  only  as  suggestion,  may  be  justified. 

(e)  One  text  may  contain  a  number  of  subjects,  and 
the  preacher  may  desire  to  deal  with  only  one  of  them; 
but  it  is  well  if  in  treating  that  one  he  is  able  to  sub- 
ordinate the  others  to  it.  We  may  examine  as  a  concrete 
instance  Jn  3^^.  Here  there  are  four  great  themes  for  the 
Christian  preacher,  the  love  of  God,  the  gift  of  Christ,  the 
sufficiency  of  faith,  the  eternal  Hfe.  Each  might  be  made 
the  subject  of  a  sermon,  and  the  others  be  worked  into  the 
treatment  of  it.  Most  preachers  would  probably  lay  hold 
on  the  first  as  the  predominant  theme,  but  the  context 
rather  indicates  that  it  is  the  last,  the  eternal  life.  If  we 
take  the  love  of  Ood  as  subject,  the  outline  of  the  sermon 
might  be  as  follows : — (1)  the  distinctive  character,  (2)  the 
exhaustive  measure,  (3)  the  universal  demand,  (4)  the  final 
result.  If  we  take  the  eternal  life,  the  divisions  might  be 
(1)  the  distinctive  character,  (2)  the  ultimate  cause,  (3)  the 
immediate  channel,  (4)  the  essential  condition.  The  gift 
of  Christ  might  be  discussed  as  regards  (1)  its  reason,  (2) 
its  riches,  (3)  its  requirement,  (4)  its  result.  The  sufficiency 
of  faith  might  be  proved  as  follows : — (1)  because  all  men 
can  exercise  it;  (2)  because  its  exercise  secures  eternal 
life ;  (3)  because  that  eternal  life  is  the  purpose  of  the  gift 
of  Christ ;  (4)  because  the  gift  of  Christ  is  the  highest 
expression  of  the  love  which  is  the  perfection  of  God.  A 
preacher  will  find  that  he  can  preach  a  number  of  sermons  on 
one  text,  taking  now  one  subject,  then  another  containeti  in  it. 

if)  A  text  may  serve  to  focus  a  character,  an  event,  a 

*  See  the  writer's  The  Joy  of  Finding, 


THE   CHOICE   OF   SUBJECTS   AND  TEXTS        389 

period ;  and  it  would  be  unreasonable  not  to  allow  the 
preacher  to  use  the  text  as  the  starting-point  of  the  dis- 
cussion of  the  whole  subject.  The  verses  in  which  the 
evangelist  records  the  look  of  Jesus  which  brought  Peter 
to  repentance^  may  fitly  serve  as  the  text  for  a  sermon 
on  Peter's  fall  and  recovery,  including  necessarily  some 
discussion  of  his  experience  and  character.  With  the 
137th  Psalm  as  starting-point  the  preacher  might  sketch 
the  history  of  the  exiles  in  Babylon  and  draw  from  it  the 
lessons  it  can  convey  even  to  the  Christian  nations ;  and 
the  following  divisions  of  his  theme  might  be  suggested  : 
(1)  the  difficulty  of  singing  the  Lord's  song  in  the  strange 
land ;  (2)  the  danger  of  forgetting  the  Lord's  song  in  the 
strange  land ;  (3)  the  discovery  of  the  Lord  as  ruling  even 
in  the  strange  land  (Cyrus'  decree  of  return) ;  (4)  the 
disclosure  of  the  truth  of  the  Lord  in  the  experience  of 
the  strange  land  (the  Prophet  of  the  Exile,  especially  the 
picture  of  the  Suffering  Servant).  Just  as  the  preacher  is 
not  always  bound  to  exhaust  the  text  in  his  treatment  of 
his  subject,  so  neither  should  he  be  limited  in  his  treat- 
ment of  the  subject  by  the  text.  So  long  as  he  avoids 
arbitrary  and  artificial  connections,  so  long  as  his  sermon 
is  an  organic  development,  of  which  the  text  is  the  germ, 
he  is  using  his  lawful  liberty  and  is  not  guilty  of  blame- 
worthy caprice. 

(2)  The  choice  of  subjects  for  treatment  no  less  than 
of  texts  calls  for  some  method  and  system.  Without 
this  the  danger  is  that  the  congregation  will  be  made  the 
sport  or  victim  of  the  individual  peculiarity  of  the  preacher. 
His  circumstances,  his  moods,  his  interests,  his  studies  will 
too  exclusively  determine  what  his  subjects  will  be.  A 
great  defect  of  Christian  thought  and  life  to-day  for  which 
the  pulpit  must  accept  a  large  share  of  responsibility  is 
partiality  and  disproportion,  the  lack  of  an  all-round  know- 
ledge of  Christian  truth  and  duty.^     The  pulpit  is  not  a 

1  Lk  22«i-«2. 

^  The  ignorance  of  the  mass  of  the  people  of  what  Christianity  really  is 
is  insisted  on  in  the  volume,  The  Army  avd  Religion. 


390  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

lecturer's  desk,  or  the  church  a  class-room  ;  and  the  writer 
would  be  the  last  to  suggest  that  the  method  (or  at  least 
the  supposed  method)  of  the  one  should  be  transferred  to 
the  other.  Fully  recognising  that  the  sermon  should  be 
both  an  act  of  worship  and  a  work  of  art,  the  writer  would 
urge  that  there  might  be  more  continuous  and  progressive 
instruction.  A  preacher  might  resolve  that  he  would  in 
order  take  up  the  great  doctrines  of  the  Christian  faith, 
especially  those  that  are  falling  into  neglect  or  are  being 
assailed  (the  latter  he  may  treat  constructively  and  not 
apologetically  or  polemically).  Or  he  might  set  forth  the 
great  Christian  virtues  and  graces  (with  special  reference 
to  the  actual  conditions  of  his  time  and  neighbourhood). 
There  are  so  many  influences  adverse  to  the  Christian  view 
of  life  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  pulpit  to  expound  and 
enforce  it.^ 

5.  It  is  usually  taken  for  granted  that  the  text  is  a 
verse  or  part  of  a  verse,  or  at  most  a  few  verses  of 
Scripture :  and  this  treatment  of  the  Bible  in  broken 
fragments  has  many  disadvantages,  which  can,  however,  to 
a  considerable  extent  be  removed,  if  the  preacher  will  not 
only  study,  but  also  present  his  text  always  in  relation  to 
the  context.  As  will  be  shown  in  a  subsequent  chapter, 
the  introduction  of  the  sermon  should  aim  at  replacing  the 
part  in  the  whole.  (1)  In  fixing  the  limits  of  the  text 
and  the  context,  the  preacher  needs  to  be  warned  against  a 
false  reliance  on  the  chapter  and  verse  divisions  in  the 
Authorised  Version.  If  preachers  would  always  use,  if  not 
the  original  texts,  at  least  a  modern  paragraph  Bible,  where 
the  verse  divisions  disappear,  and  such  divisions  as  are 
indicated  by  the  paragraphs  are  based  on  some  intelligible 
principle,  they  would  escape  this  "  snare  and  delusion." 
There  is  no  valid  reason,  since  the  division  into  verses  is 
arbitrary,  why  a  text  should  not  consist  of  a  number  of 
verses,  a  psalm,  a  parable,  a  speech,  an  oracle,  a  complete 
argument,  an  entire  illustration.      The  only  valid  limitation 

^  See  Hrnry  Ward  Beecher's   Lfctiirf!^  (m.   Preaching,  third  series,  and 
Dale's  Christian  Doctrine. 


THE   CHOICE   OF  SUBJECTS  AND   TEXTS        391 

is  that  the  portion  can  be  treated  as  a  whole,  and  the  unity 
of  the  subject  of  the  sermon  be  preserved. 

(2)  Such  a  portion  need  not  be  treated  as  in  the  homily 
by  a  continuous,  verse  by  verse,  exposition,  but  the  skill  of 
the  preacher  in  constructing  the  sermon  will  be  shown  as 
he  can  present  it  as  an  organic  unity.  The  story  told  in 
John  9  can  be  so  presented  as  an  orderly  whole,  the 
development  of  the  faith  of  the  blind  man  being  the 
unifying  principle.  Here  a  character  and  experience  are 
presented  in  one  portion  of  Scripture,  which  can  be  taken 
as  text ;  but  very  often  a  career  is  sketched  for  us  in  a 
number  of  detached  passages.  There  is  no  reason  why  the 
preacher  should  not  take  a  life  for  his  subject ;  but  there 
would  be  undoubted  inconvenience  in  his  asking  the  con- 
gregation to  take  all  the  scattered  references  as  his  text ; 
in  this  case  it  is  advisable  to  take  one  incident  or  one 
saying  or  one  statement  of  praise  or  blame  as  the  text,  and 
making  that  as  it  were  the  focus  for  the  manifold  rays  of 
allusion  to  the  biography.  If  what  the  preacher  intends 
is  not  to  deliver  a  lecture,  but  to  preach  a  sermon,  he 
must,  however,  be  careful  to  subordinate  all  the  details  to 
the  one  impression  that  he  desires  to  make. 

(3)  The  preacher  needs  to  be  warned  also  against 
needlessly  dividing  a  unity.  For  instance,  1  Co  S^**"^® 
presents  one  picture  to  the  imagination,  and  should  be 
treated  as  a  whole  in  any  sermon,  and  not  be  broken  up 
into  verses  and  clauses :  so  also  2  Co  2^*"^^  The  phrase 
in  Is  61^  (E.V.)  "a  garland  for  ashes,"  presents  a  complete 
picture,  and  interpreted  by  the  context  can  serve  as  a  text 
for  a  sermon  on  How  God  turns  Sorrow  into  Joy.  Short 
or  long,  if  the  text  has  a  unity,  it  is  suitable  for  the  use  of 
the  preacher. 

6.  As  in  this  chapter  we  have  been  concerned  with 
the  use  of  the  Bible  by  the  preacher,  it  is  fitting  that  it 
should  close  with  the  words  of  a  great  preacher  on  Sow  to 
Use  tlie  Bible.  "  There  are,"  says  Beecher,  "  what  may  be 
called,  then,  the  Bible  of  the  closet,  the  Bible  of  the  class- 
room, and  the  Bible  of  the  pulpit.     I  do  not  mention  these 


392  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

as  being  separate  from  each  other,  because  all  of  them  run 
more  or  less  into  one  another.  Still  less  do  I  speak  of 
them  as  being  antagonistic,  because  they  all  have  or  may 
have  an  auxiliary  relationship  to  each  other.  So  that  the 
most  perfect  use  of  sacred  Scripture  will  be  that  which 
combines  the  three."  ^  The  first  "  is  interpreted  by  personal 
necessity,  and  by  elective  affinity."  ^  The  second  "  is  the 
Bible  philosophised  and  interpreted  according  to  some 
system.  It  is  indispensable  that  there  should  be  a  Bible 
of  the  Classroom."  *  The  third  "  is  really  the  combination 
of  the  other  two."  *  "  At  last,"  he  says,  "  you  will  come  to 
the  preacher's  Bible  itself,  with  all  its  vast  resources,  from 
which  you  will  take  truths  that  are  good  for  your  own  soul 
and  for  other  men's  souls,  that  you  may  bring  them,  with 
all  the  vigour  and  unction  and  emotion  which  comes  from 
your  personal  participation  in  them,  home  to  the  salvation 
of  men.  When  you  have  the  preacher's  Bible  you  have 
that  which  is  like  a  living  power,  and  you  are  a  trumpet, 
and  the  life  of  God  is  behind  you,  so  that  the  words  which 
come  from  you  are  breathed  by  Him."  ^ 

^  Lectures  on  Preaching,  p.  21.  ^  P.  27.  'P.  28. 

*  P.  42.  »  P.  43. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  CONTENTS  OF  THE  SERMON. 

1.  In  the  Ancient  Ehetoric,  the  invention  was  dealt 
with  before  the  disposition,  and  Vinet  in  his  HomiUtique 
and  Bassermann  in  his  Geistlichen  Beredsamkeit  follow  this 
method.  But  it  may  be  questioned  whether  for  the 
Christian  preacher  for  whom  the  text  with  its  context 
should  indicate  the  contents,  this  is  the  better  way  than 
that  which  the  writer  himself  found  more  easy  and  fruitful. 
When  the  subject  has  been  selected  and  the  text  found,  or 
vice  versd,  the  next  step  seems  to  be  at  once  to  make  the 
outline  of  the  sermon,  or  determine  its  division.  As  a  rule, 
the  text  itself  combined  with  the  subject  will  suggest  the 
division,  if  there  is  a  close  enough  correspondence  between 
them  to  make  the  exposition  of  the  text  identical  with  the 
treatment  of  the  subject.  If,  however,  the  subject  and 
text  are  more  loosely  connected,  so  that  the  text  in  its 
context  does  not  at  once  suggest  the  outline  of  the  sermon, 
it  may  be  necessary  to  gather  the  material  first  of  all  in 
explanation,  demonstration,  and  application  of  the  subject, 
anJ  to  determine  the  divisions  only  when  that  has  been 
sifted,  tested  and  set  in  order.^  If  the  preaching  is  ex- 
pository in  the  sense  already  advocated,  the  first  course  will 
usually  be  followed.  If  the  preaching  is  topical  in  the 
sense  that  the  text  does  not  yield  the  material  for  the 
treatment  of  the  subject,  the  second  course  will  need  to  be 
adopted.     Although  contrary    to    his    own    practice  as  a 

'  It  ia  such  a  process  that  Watson  has  in  view  in  the  account  he  gives  of 
the  "Process  of  Elaboration  "  ((7«re  of  Souls,  pp.  21-22).  For  the  writer 
himself  such  a  mode  of  invention  would  be  sim{,ily  impossible.  The  result 
must  surely  be  an  artificial  mosaic  of  thoughts,  and  not  an  organic  develop- 
ment of  thought. 

8d3 


394  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

preacher,  the  writer  in  accordance  with  the  usual  order  of 
treatment  in  homiletics,  will  now  deal  with  the  contents  of 
the  sermon. 

2.  The  primary  elements  in  a  sermon  are  definitions 
and  judgments.  (1)  As  Christianity  is  a  historical  religion, 
the  exposition  of  facts  will  often  have  a  foremost  place  in 
it.  In  this  exposition  we  may  distinguish  description  and 
narration}  A  situation  or  a  personality  may  be  described, 
an  event  or  a  career  may  be  narrated.  Apart  from  the 
literary  qualities,  to  which  we  shall  return,  which  the 
discharge  of  such  a  task  demands,  harmonious  unity  in 
description,  and  progressive  movement  in  narration,  accurate 
knowledge,  sound  judgment,  and  keen  insight  are  necessary. 
Here  the  significance  is  to  be  apprehended  and  the  value  is 
to  be  appraised.  What  may  be  called  psychological  divina- 
tion is  a  very  desirable  qualification  ;  the  ability  to  under- 
stand the  action  as  an  actor  (the  psychical  standpoint)  and 
not  merely  to  view  it  as  a  spectator  (the  psychological)  by 
putting  oneself  in  the  place  of  the  actor,  is  in  some  degree 
necessary  to  make  the  past  live  again.  The  deeper  interest 
we  now  have  in  personality,  experience,  character,  should 
be  an  encouragement  to  the  preacher  to  give  in  his  sermons 
a  larger  place  to  history  (outer  and  inner)  than  to  theology 
and  ethics ;  or  rather  doctrine  and  practice  can  be  most 
effectively  taught  when  presented  concretely  in  belief  and 
life.  The  inner  life  of  Jesus,  described  and  narrated  with 
reverence  and  sympathy,  will  make  His  divine  human 
personality  more  real  than  would  the  exposition  of  a 
Christology.2  To  sketch  Paul's  experience  of  salvation 
with  love's  insight  will  make  grace  more  intelligible  than 
to  give  a  plan  of  salvation,  or  a  theory  of  atonement.  A 
whole  sermon  might  so  present  to  the  imagination  and  the 
affections  of  a  congregation,  through  description  or  narration 
the  person  or  work  of  the  Lord,  or  the  life  in  Him  of  His 

*  VInet,  op.  eit.,  pp.  179-194,  and  Christlieb,  op.  eii.,  pp.  135-150. 

*  This  the  writer  has  attempted  to  do  in  his  book,  Studies  in  the  Inner 
Life,  of  Jesus,  into  which  he  has  gathered  the  contents  of  eighty  sermons 
preached  to  one  congregation. 


THE   CONTENTS   OF   THE   SEKMON  395 

servant,  that  little  (if  anything)  would  need  to  be  added  in 
commendation  of  His  truth  and  grace.  But  even  if  in  a 
sermon  theology  or  ethics  is  expounded,  in  the  introduction 
the  exposition  of  the  text  will  often  demand  description  or 
narration,  so  that  idea  and  ideal  may  be  rooted  in,  and 
draw  nourishment  from  historical  reality.  This  description 
and  narration  must  not  be  overdone,  merely  as  an  artistic 
production  to  gratify  aesthetic  taste.  Beauty  is  not  out  of 
place  in  the  pulpit ;  but  it  is  there  not  in  its  own  right, 
but  as  the  servant  of  truth  and  holiness. 

(2)  So  closely  in  the  Holy  Scriptures  is  human  history 
related  to  divine  revelation,  outward  events  to  inward 
experiences,  that  the  description  or  narration  of  facts  can 
only  in  theory  be  distinguished  from  the  exposition  of 
ideas  and  ideals.  These  ideas  and  ideals  should  not  in 
preaching  be  presented  as  abstractions,  but  as  realities,  for 
they  are  the  faith  and  the  duty  of  living  men,  to  whom 
God  and  goodness  are  real.  It  is  true  that  often  to  make 
these  realities  intelligible,  it  is  necessary  to  define  them 
as  abstractions.  We  may  apprehend  the  reality  of  love 
as  presented  in  the  person  and  work  of  Christ ;  and  yet 
we  may  come  to  understand  what  love  is  even  in  Him  more 
clearly  and  fully  if  it  is  defined  for  us  in  relation  to  the 
manifold  activities  of  the  personality  which  loves,  as  the 
judgment  of  value  of  the  mind,  the  feeling  of  interest  of  the 
heart,  the  2Ji('^'pose  of  good  of  the  ivill,  the  giving  of  07ie  self 
to  another  in  order  to  find  itself  in  another}  However 
valuable  Bergson's  doctrine  of  intuition  may  be  as  a 
corrective  of  an  exaggerated  or  exclusive  intellectualism, 
he  has  not  disproved  the  advantage  and  the  importance 
of  general  ideas.  The  presentation  of  faith,  for  instance, 
in  the  teaching  of  Jesus,  the  doctrine  of  Paul,  the  polemic 
of  James,  the  description  of  Hebrews,  can  be  brought  into 
liarmony  by  forming  a  conception,  in  which  the  various 
elements  or  aspects  are  brought  together,  and  shown  to  be 

^  The  writer  retains  the  sentence  for  the  reason  given  above,  despite  the 
depreciation  of  any  such  attempts  to  define  which  recently  fell  from  the 
lips  of  a  greater  preacher. 


396  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

related  to  and  consisteut  with  one  another.  Christian  Faith 
is  the  belief  of  the  mind,  the  trust  of  the  heart,  tJie  surrender 
of  the  will  in  relation  to  the  invisible  and  the  future  as 
made  present  and  certain  in  the  person  of  Christ. 

(3)  In  the  definition  of  ideas  and  ideals  the  Christian 
preacher  must  avoid  the  jargon  of  theological  and  ethical 
systems  or  schools,  he  must  use  the  language  of  common 
(not  vulgar)  life ;  but  a  knowledge  of  systems  and  schools 
will  give  accuracy  to  his  knowledge,  authority  to  his 
judgment,  and  so  distinctness  to  his  definitions.  As  all 
his  definitions  are  intended  to  make  religion  and  moral 
life  more  intelligible,  he  must  be  constantly  returning  like 
Antaeus  to  his  mother  earth,  with  reference  and  illustration 
to  life.  It  is  because  doctrinal  and  ethical  preaching  was 
formerly  so  abstract  and  technical  that  it  has  fallen  into 
such  disrepute.  But  the  reproach  may,  and  ought  to  be 
removed.  In  all  realms,  men  are  seeking  distinct  con- 
ceptions based  on  adequate  knowledge.  Should  the  moral 
and  religious  life  be  allowed  to  remain  an  exception  ?  To 
recall  Kant's  statement,  the  concept  without  the  percept 
is  empty  and  the  percept  without  the  concept  blind ;  or 
to  put  it  in  more  directly  applicable  language,  theology 
and  ethics  without  experience  and  character  are  empty, 
but  experience  and  character  without  theology  and  ethics 
are  blind.  The  preacher  then  need  not  dread  definition ; 
it  is  his  task  to  make  ideas  and  ideals  intelligible.  Let 
him  not  offer  his  definition  formally  as  such,  but  let  him 
make  sure  that,  however  informally,  he  is  conveying  quite 
distinctly  to  his  hearers  the  contents  of  a  definition  of  his 
subject.  A  preacher  will  be  greatly  helped  in  his  labours, 
if  he  does  not  wait  to  define  a  subject  till  he  is  trying  to 
deal  with  it  in  the  pulpit.  Let  him  be  constantly  thinking 
on  the  contents  of  the  theology  or  ethics  he  preaches,  and 
let  him,  when  he  has  reached  a  distinct  conception  for 
himself,  labom*  to  give  it  as  accurate  and  adequate,  distinct 
and  memorable  a  definition  as  he  can  command. 

(4)  The  exposition  of  a  subject  will  not  and  cannot 
stop   short  at   a   definition.     This   must    be  expanded  in 


THE  CONTENTS   OF  THE   SERMON  397 

instances.  Thus  humility  will  be  better  understood  if  the 
preaicher  recalls  Jesus'  claim  for  Himself  as  the  meek  and 
lowly  in  heart,^  the  washing  of  the  disciples'  feet,^  His 
entry  into  Jerusalem,  not  on  the  war-horse,  but  the  peaceful 
ass,^  Paul's  reference  to  His  poverty  by  which  He  makes 
others  rich,*  or  to  His  self-emptying  in  assuming  the  form 
of  a  man,  and  becoming  obedient  unto  death.^  Faith  can 
be  illustrated  by  the  Eoman  centurion,*  the  Syrophoenician 
mother,^  the  sinful  woman  ^  and  the  penitent  thief.*  The 
better  the  preacher  knows  his  Bible,  the  readier  will  he 
be  in  making  his  definition  more  intelligible  by  pictures 
taken  from  life  itself.  The  Bible  is  not  the  only  treasure- 
house  to  which  the  preacher  can  turn.  The  history  of 
the  Christian  Church,  the  biographies  of  great  and  good 
men,  even  imaginative  literature  (poetry  and  fiction)  can 
afford  abundant  material  to  make  an  idea  or  ideal  more 
vivid  and  so  more  real  to  the  hearer.  With  the  use  of 
illustration  in  argument  we  shall  deal  later  in  the 
discussion,  at  this  point  what  must  be  insisted  on  is  that, 
while  the  intellect  has  its  right  to  the  abstract  definition, 
the  imagination  has  its  claim  to  the  concrete  instances ; 
and  the  preacher  must  observe  the  due  proportion  of  both. 
(5)  But  thought  cannot  move  in  definitions  only ; 
if  it  did,  it  would  be  moving  in  a  circle ;  for  a  definition 
is  analytic ;  it  only  exhibits  what  is  already  contained. 
The  first  step  in  argument  or  reasoning  is  the  judgment 
in  which  we  relate  one  idea  to  another  idea,  which  is  not 
included  in  it.  When  we  say  that  faith  is  itself  sufficient 
for  salvation,  our  thought  is  moving  from  the  one  idea, 
faith,  to  the  other  idea,  sufficient  for  salvation.  The  con- 
nection between  the  two  ideas  may  be  so  familiar,  or 
obvious,  that  all  the  preacher  needs  to  do  is  to  state  the 
connection ;  and,  if  he  wants  to  give  freshness  to  his 
presentation,  he  may  add  some  instances  of  the  connection. 
But  the  preacher  should  be  on   his  guard  against  filling 


1  Mt  11^. 

2Jn  13»-". 

»  Mt  21». 

*  2  Co  89. 

6  Phil  28-8. 

•  Mt  S"-!", 

^Mt  152i-» 

8  J^t  7«-6u 

»  Lk  23« 

398  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

his  sermon  with  truisms  or  commonplaces.  He  wants  to 
lead  his  hearers  to  "  fresh  fields  and  pastures  new."  He 
will  therefore  aim  at  thinking  things  together  in  the  sense 
of  connecting  religious  or  moral  ideas  which  are  not  for 
common  thought  connected.  In  the  Beatitudes/  Jesus 
connects  with  the  common  thought  of  blessedness  a  number 
of  inward  conditions  which  were  not  generally  so  connected  ; 
so  that  this  statement  came  as  a  surprise.  The  preacher 
cannot  attempt  in  his  judgments  to  be  always  offering 
surprises,  to  be  adding  fresh  truths  to  the  thought  of  his 
hearers ;  the  effort  to  be  constantly  original  would  quickly 
bring  him  into  the  paths  of  error  rather  than  of  truth. 
The  task  is  mainly  to  bring  things  to  remembrance,  to 
make  explicit  connections  of  ideas  already  implicit  in  the 
minds  of  his  hearers ;  as  a  scribe  who  is  a  disciple  of  the 
Kingdom  he  should  bring  out  of  his  treasure  things  new 
and  old.2  The  old  truth  may  have  become  so  neglected, 
that  the  statement  of  it  again  may  make  it  appear  new ; 
or  even  if  the  old  truth  has  not  been  forgotten  it  may 
be  stated  so  freshly  that  it  does  come  as  new.  In  a  later 
chapter  we  shall  consider  whether  the  subject  of  the 
sermon  should  be  stated  as  a  thesis,  or  judgment.  What- 
ever the  form  may  be,  the  sermon  must  move  from  idea 
to  idea  in  judgments. 

3.  It  often  happens  that  the  connection  between  the 
two  ideas  in  a  judgment  cannot  be  taken  for  granted,  or 
be  simply  imposed  by  the  preacher  on  his  hearers.  He 
must  justify  the  connection ;  he  must  so  present  the 
connection  as  to  win  the  assent  of  his  hearers.  (1)  He 
must  therefore  give  reasons,  or  links  of  connection  between 
the  two  ideas  which  are  not  obviously  immediately  related 
to  one  another.^  In  the  Beatitudes,  Jesus  gives  a  reason 
for  the  connection  of  ideas  in  each  case  in  the  clauses 
beginning  with  the  conjunction  for.  The  writer  of  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  *  recognises  that  his  statement, 
"  without  faith,  it  is  impossible  to  please  God,"  needs  proof, 

1  Mt  5*-'«.  "  Mt  13«2. 

*  Of.  Vinet,  op.  cit.,  pp.  195-236.  *He  11«. 


THE  CONTENTS   OF   THE   SEKMON  399 

and  so  he  adds, "  for  he  that  cometh  to  God  must  believe  that 
He  is,  and  that  He  is  a  rewarder  of  them  that  diligently  seek 
Him,"  The  reason  is  usually  introduced  by  the  conjunction 
"  for  "  or  "  because  "  ("  Because  thou  hast  seen  Me,  thou 
hast  believed  "  ^).  We  cannot  ordinarily  press  the  distinction 
that  "  for "  introduces  a  reason  (a  subjective  ground)  and 
"  because "  a  cause  (an  objective  ground),  although  the 
thinker  will  always  have  present  to  his  mind  this  real 
distinction  between  the  ratio  essendi  and  the  ratio  cognoscendi. 
We  may,  however,  in  preaching  keep  in  mind  that  the 
reason  may  be  a  fact,  or  an  idea  or  ideal  (outward  or 
inward  reality).  A  reason  may  be  given  for  a  statement, 
even  when  the  formal  "  for  "  or  "  because  "  is  absent.  In 
He  1 2^,  the  relative  clause  "  who  for  the  joy  that  was 
set  before  Him  endured  the  Cross,  despising  shame,"  is 
not  merely  a  description  of  Christ,  it  is  the  reason  why 
He  is  declared  to  be  "  the  author  and  finisher  of  faith  " ; 
His  willing  death  in  hope  of  His  rising  again  is  the  typical 
instance  of  faith,  which  gives  Him  the  supreme  place 
among  the  heroes  of  faith.  It  might  not  be  quite 
superfluous  to  point  out  that  the  connection  of  judgments 
may  sometimes  be  so  stated  that  it  may  be  difficult  to 
distinguish  antecedent  and  consequent.  In  Lk  7*'  the 
clause  "  for  she  loved  much "  would  appear  to  give  the 
reason  why  "  her  sins,  which  are  many,  are  forgiven " ; 
but  in  truth  the  much  love  was  the  sign  or  token  that 
many  sins  had  been  forgiven  ;  it  was  faith  that  saved  her.^ 
The  sign  or  token,  as  in  this  case,  may  be  more  prominent 
than  the  cause,  and  may  thus  very  easily  be  mistaken  for 
it.  The  fruits  of  faith  may  take  the  place  of  faith  as  the 
cause  of  salvation. 

(2)  This  discussion  leads  us  to  a  very  material  con- 
sideration for  the  preacher,  the  kind  of  reasons  that  he  is 
to  employ.  There  was  a  time  when  in  most  congregations 
to  quote  a  text  of  Scripture  was  to  clinch  an  argument,  to 
end  a  controversy.  The  preacher  should  not  regret  that 
that  time  is  past.  He  wants  rationally  to  convince, 
^  Jn  2029.  i  Lt  750, 


400  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

morally  to  persuade,  spiritually  to  constrain  his  hearers ; 
and  so  he  must  desire  to  use  no  other  reasons  than  can 
win  a  free  and  intelligent  assent.  Eeason,  conscience,  the 
soul,  however,  in  men  are  not  uniform,  but  differ  with 
time  and  place.  As  knowledge  widens  and  thought  moves 
on,  the  reason  develops,  and  what  captured  its  assent  at 
one  time  does  not  at  another ;  even  in  different  persons  at 
the  same  time  an  identical  reason  cannot  be  assumed. 
Even  so  standards  of  right  or  wrong  change  and  vary ;  the 
conscience  of  one  man  acquiesces  in,  if  it  does  not  approve, 
what  another  man's  condemns.  The  aspirations  of  the  soul 
are  not  the  same  always  and  everywhere.  One  man  feels 
most  keenly  the  need  of  forgiveness ;  another  longs  for  the 
promise  of  immortality  ;  a  third  hungers  and  thirsts  for 
the  living  God  Himself.  These  variations  and  varieties 
of  inner  life  the  preacher  must  have  present  to  his  thought ; 
when  he  is  seeking  the  reason  he  will  advance  to  win  the 
acceptance  of  his  hearers  for  the  judgment  which  he 
desires  to  impart  to  them.  He  must  find  the  points  of 
contact  intellectually,  morally,  spiritually,  between  himself 
and  his  hearers,  so  that  he  may  bring  them  into  closer 
agreement.^ 

(3)  The  statement  of  a  reason  may  not  be  sufficient  to 
commend  a  judgment  at  once ;  the  mind  of  the  preacher 
and  his  hearers  may  not  yet  be  in  sufficiently  close  contact. 
It  may  be  necessary  for  him  to  follow  a  line  of  reasoning 
as  well  as  to  give  a  reason.  A  distinguished  man  of 
science,  who  at  times  as  a  by-product  of  his  manifold 
activities  undertakes  the  task  of  teaching  theologians  their 
business,  some  years  ago  declared  that  the  Christian  pulpit 
is  mistaken  in  saying  so  much  about  sin  and  the  forgive- 
ness of  sin,  as  the  man  of  to-day  does  not  worry  about  his 
sins,  and  is  not  to  be  severely  blamed  for  not  worrying. 
Shall  the  preacher  then  cease  to  deliver  the  Gospel,  which 
has  been  light  out  of  darkness,  life  out  of  death  to  an 
immeasurable  multitude,  out  of  deference  to  this  modern 

^  Such  adaptation  is  the  theme  illustrated  and  enforced  in  Jackson's  The 
Preacher  an/i  the  Modem  Mind. 


THE  CONTENTS  OF  THE   SERMON  401 

peculiarity,  if  indeed  it  be  so  ?  Let  him  seek  for  a  point 
of  contact ;  for  many  men  he  will  find  it  in  the  growing 
interest  in  social  reform.  Keform  involves  that  there  are 
wrongs  which  must  be  removed.  Are  these  wrongs  the 
inevitable  result  of  an  economic  system,  or  a  social  order, 
which  no  man  produced,  no  man  can  alter,  and  for  which, 
therefore,  no  man  is  responsible  ?  Such  a  conclusion  would 
make  reform,  which  it  is  assumed  the  hearer  desires,  an 
impossibility.  Men  are  morally  responsible  for  the  con- 
tinuance of  wrongs  which  they  can  remove.  But  if  they 
can  remove  them,  they  are  surely  not  altogether  without 
responsibility  for  the  existence  of  them.  A  closer  scrutiny 
will  disclose  the  fact,  that  social  wrongs  are  in  many  cases 
due  to  individual  sins,  not  deliberate  it  may  be,  or  intended 
to  have  these  results,  but  still  the  cause  of  them.  Greed, 
selfishness,  carelessness,  idleness,  self-indulgence  are  real 
causes  of  many  present  evils.  If  we  want  social  reform, 
there  are  some  sins  we  must  worry  about  in  order  to  get 
social  wrongs  removed.  In  this  way  it  may  be  the 
preacher  can  move  some  of  his  hearers  to  have  that  godly 
concern,  to  which  his  Gospel  makes  its  appeal.  Again,  how 
many,  hitherto  indifferent  to  the  evils  of  drunkenness,  have 
been  aroused  to  anxiety  because  intemperance  decreases 
efficiency  in  a  time  of  war.  Once  more,  the  claim  of 
foreign  missions  may  be  attached  to  the  growing  imperial 
sentiment,  or  it  may  be  shown  that  as  the  world  is  in- 
creasingly becoming  one  in  commerce,  civilisation,  culture, 
the  conflict  of  races  can  be  avoided  only  by  the  supremacy 
of  one  universal  faith.  The  age  has  an  aversion  to  the 
belief  in  miracles  or  the  supernatural ;  it  appreciates  religi- 
ous experience,  moral  character,  and  personal  influence. 
The  Christian  preacher  who  wishes  to  prove  the  divinity 
of  Christ  will  be  wise  if  he  does  not  begin,  although  his 
convictions  may  require  him  to  end  with  the  doctrine  of 
the  Logos,  the  facts  of  the  Virgin-birth,  the  miracles  and 
the  Resurrection  of  Christ,  the  testimony  of  the  Apostles 
to  the  Risen  Lord.  He  will  seek  to  show  that  the 
perfection    of    the    character,    the    absoluteness    of    the 


402  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

experience,  the  supremacy  of  the  influence  of  Christ  among 
men  demand  the  confession  that  He  is  more  than,  and 
above  men,  and  so  unique  that  He  can  claim  to  be  called 
divine.  The  rule  for  any  such  argument  is  that  the 
preacher  starts  from  what  he  may  assume  his  hearers  to 
concede,  and  goes  on  by  such  steps  as  carry  their  assent 
until  he  brings  them  to  the  goal  of  conviction  to  which  he 
desires  to  bring  them.  In  these  days  of  doubt,  difficulty 
and  even  denial,  the  preacher  must  be  prepared  to  follow 
a  long  course  of  reasoning  as  well  as  to  give  reasons.  It 
is  not  suggested  that  every  sermon,  or  even  many  sermons, 
should  be  apologetic,  still  less  polemic  ;  but  even  in  a  doctrinal, 
practical  or  devotional  sermon,  which  does  not  assume,  or 
challenge  contradiction,  unless  the  preacher  is  going  over 
an  oft-told  tale,  it  will  be  necessary  for  him  to  keep  in 
touch  with  the  mind  of  his  hearers,  and  to  carry  their 
thoughts  along  with  him. 

(4)  It  is  not  necessary  to  discuss  technically  the  forms 
of  reasoning,  as  the  preacher  of  wide  knowledge  and 
sound  judgment  will  use  them  all  fitly,  without  bemg 
aware  that  he  is  a  logician.  It  may,  however,  be  pointed 
out  that  there  are  some  forms  of  reasoning  which  are  more 
effective  than  others.  The  deductive  reasoning  of  the 
syllogism  is  out  of  place  in  the  pulpit ;  and  even  argument 
from  general  principles  is,  as  a  rule,  less  effective  than  from 
concrete  instances,  for  men  want  facts  rather  than  ideas, 
observation  rather  than  speculation,  {a)  There  are,  of 
course,  general  principles  which  are  almost  universally 
admitted,  and  from  which  the  preacher  may  draw  his 
inferences  with  the  confidence  that  these  will  find  general 
assent.  Thus  the  universal  Fatherhood  of  God  has  become 
a  common  article  of  the  Christian  faith.  Men  will  accept 
what  is  consistent  with  that  truth,  and  reject  what  is  in 
contradiction  to  it.  Thus  man's  personal  immortality  may 
be  deducted  from  the  relation  of  God  to  man  aa  Father  to 
child.  Most  men  now  reject  the  doctrine  of  eternal 
punishment,  in  spite  of  all  the  Bible  texts  which  may  be 
quoted  in  support  of  it,  and  even  the  facts  of  life  that  seem 


THE  CONTENTS   OF  THE  SERMON  403 

to  point  in  the  same  direction,  because  it  contradicts  the 
truth ;  and  few  men  can  now  persuade  themselves  to 
accept  the  doctrine  of  conditional  immortality,  despite  the 
zeal  of  its  few  advocates,  because  it  seems  inconsistent  with 
that  truth.  In  such  deductive  reasoning,  however,  the 
warning  is  not  out  of  place,  that  we  have  not  so  complete 
a  knowledge,  so  infallible  a  judgment  in  regard  to  this 
general  principle  as  to  warrant  us  in  drawing  too  con- 
fidently our  deductions  from  it.  The  truth  is  expressed 
in  a  metaphor,  and  our  reasoning  from  it  may  really  be 
analogical  when  we  assume  that  it  is  deductive ;  we  are 
making  the  possibihty  or  the  necessity  of  the  human 
fatherhood  the  measure  of  the  divine.  This  consideration 
is  of  wider  application ;  for  we  must  remember  that  the 
knowledge  of  the  divine,  the  eternal,  the  invisible  is  not 
yet  "  face  to  face,"  but  as  in  a  mirror  "  in  a  riddle."  ^ 
Because  we  recognise  the  limits  of  our  knowledge  on  the 
one  hand,  and  also  the  limits  of  the  revelation  of  God  on 
the  other,  as  adapted  to  our  limitations,  we  cannot  in  the 
pulpit  use  the  deductive  method  as  did  preachers  of  a 
former  generation.  We  do  not  attempt  to  prove  by  a 
logical  demonstration  the  necessity  of  the  atonement ;  we 
admit  that  the  appeal  must  be  to  moral  and  religious 
intuitions,  which  go  deeper  than  logic's  plummet  can 
fathom. 

(b)  Much  of  our  argument  must  necessarily  be  analog- 
ical, as  was  that  of  Jesus.  The  fact  of  the  Incarnation 
both  warrants  and  limits  anthropomorphism  in  our  religious 
thought.  God  is  both  like  and  unlike  man.  The  failure 
to  recognise  that  Jesus  was  the  Word  as  flesh,  with  the 
consequent  tendency  to  assert  the  identity  without  also 
recognising  the  difference  between  the  historical  reality 
and  the  eternal  truth,  is  responsible  for  a  too  familiar  and 
not  reverent  enough  handling  of  the  doctrine  of  God  in  the 
pulpit.  If  in  former  times  God  was  spoken  of  as  almost 
a  Shylock  who  will  have  his  pound  of  flesh,  in  the  present 
day  He  is  sometimes  talked  about  as  if  He  were  a  very 

» 1  Co  13". 


404  THE   CHRISTIAN    PREACHER 

foolish  and  weak  parent  who  let  His  children  have  their 
way,  and  neither  bothered  Himself  nor  them  about  their 
disobedience.  Within  the  limits  that  the  difference 
between  Creator  and  creature,  Sovereign  and  subject, 
perfect  Father  and  imperfect  child  imposes,  reasoning 
from  analogy  is  not  only  legitimate,  but  inevitable.  But 
we  must  argue  not  from  what  man's  reason,  conscience  and 
affection  regard  as  least,  but  only  from  what  they  acknow- 
ledge as  most  worthy  in  man ;  to  see  God  we  must  not 
look  to  the  lowest  depths  to  which  man  can  sink,  but  to  the 
highest  heights  to  which  he  can  soar.  The  reality  of  God 
corresponds  to  man's  ideal,  and  not  his  actual,  to  what  he 
wants  to  be  in  his  best  moments,  not  to  what  he  is  in  his 
worst.  The  personality  of  the  preacher  will  thus  affect, 
and  cannot  but  affect,  his  use  of  this  argument,  for  he  will 
shape  God  in  his  own  likeness.^  The  preacher  will  be 
wise,  however,  if  he  will,  as  far  as  he  can,  make  not  him- 
self, but  the  best  men  and  women  he  knows  personally 
or  by  reading  the  human  reality  from  which  he  argues 
to  the  divine ;  for  a  man's  capacity  for  admiration  rises 
far  above,  and  goes  far  beyond  the  actuality  of  his  imita- 
tion. The  value  of  biography  and  history  is  in  this  connec- 
tion obvious.  As  Christ  is  God  incarnate,  it  is  legitimate 
to  infer  from  what  Jesus  was  to  what  God  is,  to  seek  the 
likeness  of  the  Father  in  the  Son ;  but  even  here  the 
difference  incarnation  involved  must  be  recognised.  The 
statement  that  "  Jesus  Christ  is  the  same  yesterday  and 
to-day,  yea  and  for  ever,"  ^  warrants  another  kind  of 
analogical  argument ;  we  may  reason  that  as  the  Jesus 
of  the  yesterday  of  the  earthly  life  was,  so  is  the  Christ 
of  the  to-day  of  Christian  experience,  and  so  will  be  the 
Lord  of  glory  for  ever.  While  "  eye  hath  not  seen,  nor 
ear  heard,  neither  have  entered  into  the  heart  of  man  the 
things  which  God  hath  prepared  for  them  that  love  Him,"  ' 
and  while  "  it  doth  not  yet  appear  what  we  shall  be,"  *  yet 

^  Cf.  Browning's  poem,  "Caliban  upon  Setebos;  or,  Natural  Theology  in 
the  Island." 

2  He  13».  »  1  Co  29.  M  Jn  32. 


THE  CONTENTS   OF   THE   SERMON  405 

the  assurance  that  we  shall  be  like  Him,  who  is  the  same, 
when  we  shall  see  Him  as  He  is,  warrants  our  working 
out  the  analogy  of  the  present  and  the  future  life  in 
Christ.  If  any  present  relationship  is  so  consecrated  by 
the  common  life  in  Christ  that  it  enriches  that  life,  we 
are  warranted  in  inferring  that  it  has  the  promise  and 
pledge  of  continuance  hereafter.  We  may  use  the  identity 
between  the  God  of  nature  and  the  God  of  revelation,  not 
as  Butler  in  the  Analogy  did,  to  bring  revelation  down  to 
the  level  of  nature,  however  necessary  and  legitimate  for 
his  immediate  purpose  his  procedure  was,  but  rather  to 
find  the  solution  of  the  problems  of  creation  and  providence 
in  redemption.  If  "  it  became  Him,  for  whom  are  all  things, 
and  by  whom  are  all  things,  in  bringing  many  sons  unto 
glory,  to  make  the  captain  of  their  salvation  perfect 
through  suffering,"  ^  we  may  better  understand  why  God, 
as  it  were,  stays  the  hand  of  His  omnipotence  from  remov- 
ing many  physical  evils,  and  by  means  of  these  even  works 
out  His  moral  and  spiritual  purpose.  Suggestions  have 
already  been  made  of  fruitful  analogies  which  can  be 
worked  out  between  the  history  of  the  Hebrew  nation  and 
present  experience,  whether  individual  or  collective. 

(c)  If  the  limits  of  our  knowledge  forbid  much  deduc- 
tive argument,  if  the  likeness  between  God  and  man 
permits  and  even  requires  much  analogical  reasoning,  the 
difference  involves  that  the  form  of  argument  known  as 
a  fortiori  must  have  a  large  place.  It  has  a  large  place 
in  the  teaching  of  Jesus.  "  If  ye,  then,  being  evil,  know 
how  to  give  good  gifts  to  your  children,  how  much  more 
shall  your  heavenly  Father  give  the  Holy  Spirit  to  them 
that  ask  Him."  ^  The  most  elaborate  argument  of  this 
kind  is  found  in  Eo  5^^-21  jf  ^^iQ  disobedience  of  Adam 
has  been  efficacious  in  introducing  sin  and  death  into  the 
world,  how  much  more  efficacious  is  the  obedience  of  Christ 
in  bringing  righteousness  and  life  to  all  incn.  The  argu- 
ment may  be  present  even  when  the  formula  how  much 
7nA)re  is  absent-     "  Where  sin  abounded,  grace  did   much 

1  He  2".  2  Lk  1113. 


406  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

more  a:-oand,"'  ^  is  an  implicit  a  fortiori  argument  The 
wider  'iizusion  of  grace  may  be  inferred  from  ite  inherent 
supenoritT  to  sin,  as  it  is  the  act  of  Christ  who  is  greater 
than  Adam.  It  is  implied  also  in  Jesus'  counsels  to  His 
disciples  in  Mt  5**~^.  The  conduct  of  the  disciples  is  to 
be  as  much  better  than  the  conduct  of  publicans  as  is 
their  relation  to  God  more  intimate.  In  all  preaching 
about  God,  His  works  and  ways,  His  transcendence  of 
man  most  be  emphasised;  but  this  can  be  done  in  a 
wrong  way  as  weU  as  a  right.  We  may  so  assert  God's 
unlikeness  to  man  as  to  rob  men  of  the  help  and  comfort 
of  the  thought  of  His  Kkene^,  and  may  thus  driye  them 
from  Christian  faith  to  agnosticism.  To  say  that  God  is 
SMftmatvTfd  is  to  depriye  ourselyes  not  only  of  the 
analogical,  but  even  the  a  fortiori  argumenr,  for  both 
aasmne  difference  within  resemblance.  God's  truth,  good- 
ness, love,  are  not  of  another  kind  than  ours,  but  of  a 
higher  degree ;  all  these  terms  mean  nor  less,  but  more 
when  we  apply  them  to  God.  God  is  truer,  better  and 
more  loving  than  we  are ;  and  this  assertion  of  difference 
enhances  and  d«jes  not  exclude  the  resemblance ;  God 
cannot  do  less,  and  He  will  do  more  than  the  Vkisest,  best 
and  kindest  human  parent  would  do.  The  ideals  and 
aspirations  of  man  show  the  direction  of  the  character 
and  the  purpose  of  God,  even  if  they  do  not,  and  cannot 
fix  \Am&  limits  of  His  perfection.  The  a  fortiori  argument 
is  a  most  comforting  and  encouraging  form  of  reasoning 
aboat  God  for  the  preacher  to  employ.  God  is  not  below 
the  downward  limit  of  man's  actuality,  but  above  the 
upward  limit  of  his  possibility.  Ir  is  this  argument 
which  is  employed  with  such  force  and  beauty  in 
Browning's  poem  of  Saul.  We  may  even  extend  the 
argument  in  this  way.  God's  fulfilments  transcend  His 
promises,  as  the  contrast  between  the  ^lessianic  hope  and 
the  reality  in  Christ  shows,  for  His  promises  must  always 
be  limited  by  men's  understanding,  and  by  them  God 
I«epares    men    to    receive    fulfilments  which    exceed    the 


THE   CO^TTEXTS   OF   THE    SERMON  407 

expectations  of  which  they  were  capable.  If  God  has 
promised,  hov:  much  more  will  He  fulfil.  How  inspiring 
a  prospect  such  an  argument  opens .' 

(d)  As  the  preacher  wants  to  keep  as  close  as  he  can 
to  life,  his  reasoning  must  be  largely  inductic^: ,  that  is, 
he  will  confirm  and  commend  a  general  principle  by 
individual  instances.  This  was  characteristic  of  Jesus' 
teachincr,  and  because  it  has  not  been  recognised  as  such, 
mistakes  have  arisen.  The  individual  instances  of  duty 
which  necessarily  were  determined  by  local  and  temporary 
conditions  have  been  taken  as  general  principles  of  per- 
manent and  universal  validity.  The  instance  most 
relevant  to  the  moment  is  His  teaching  about  non- 
resistance  of  evil.^  "We  have  often  from  the  individual 
instances  to  rise  to  the  general  principle,  and  then  we 
must  come  down  again  to  individual  instances  of  its 
application  to-day.  What  we  have  to  beware  of,  how- 
ever, is  that  we  substitute  for  the  maximum  demand,  which 
Jesus  always  puts  forward,  the  minimum  demand,  to  which 
our  moral  weakness  inclines.  If  our  application  of  the 
law  of  equal  love  to  self  and  neighbour  is  easier  and  costs 
less  than  Christ's,  we  should  suspect  it  as  inadeqnata  In 
the  application  of  any  general  principles  in  individual 
instances  the  preacher  must  always  keep  in  mind  for  his 
guidance  two  considerations,  first,  that  J^us  came  to  fulfil 
(fill  full  or  complete)  law  and  prophecy,-  and  that  the 
righteousness  of  the  disciples  of  Jesus  must  exceed  the 
righteousness  of  the  Pharisees ;  *  in  other  words,  the 
Christian  ideal  must  in  itself  always  complete  the  highest 
moral  standards  of  any  land  or  age,  and  Christian  men 
and  women  should  always  asphe  to  a  morality  above  and 
beyond  that  of  the  men  and  women  deemed  most  moral 
There  is  very  wide  scope  for  the  preacher  in  taking  the 
indi\idual  instances  of  morality  enjoined  in  the  prophets, 
the  Gospels  and  the  Epistles  so  as  to  discover  the  general 
principles  implied,  and  in  then  applying  these  ptrinciples 
to  the  instances  of  duty  for  his  hearers.     While  Protes- 

» Mt  5»-«3,  s  517.  s  5a}_ 


408  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

tantism  shuns  the  Confessional,  and  shrinks  from  casuistry, 
it  often  neglects  the  duty  of  distinct  moral  guidance.  The 
reason  why  the  reasoning  here  should  be  mainly  inductive 
is  that  an  abstract  principle  does  not  make  the  same 
appeal  as  a  concrete  instance.  The  widow's  mite  touches 
the  heart  as  well  as  enlightens  the  conscience  more  than 
a  definition  of  generosity  or  sacrifice  would,^  What  gives 
the  Bible  its  charm  and  power  as  the  literature  of  moral  and 
religious  life  is  that  it  not  only  gives  commands,  but  offers 
examples.  One  illustration  of  the  advantage  of  inductive 
reasoning  in  the  pulpit  may  be  given.  Conversion,  regenera- 
tion, new  birth  are  declared  necessary  to  the  beginning  of 
the  Christian  life ;  and  doubtless  preachers  have  talked 
a  great  deal  in  abstract  terms  about  the  necessity  of  the 
change  without  making  much  impression.  Now  Jesus 
refers  to  both  in  concrete  cases.  He  tells  His  disciples 
who  have  been  quarrelling  about  the  highest  place  in  the 
coming  Kingdom,  after  setting  the  child  in  their  midst, 
"  Except  ye  turn  (convert)  and  become  as  little  children, 
ye  shall  not  enter  into  the  Kingdom  of  heaven."  ^  Con- 
version is  a  turning  from  ambition,  rivalry,  conflict  to 
dependence,  humility,  obedience.  He  brushes  aside 
Nicodemus'  patronising  compliments  by  the  unexpected 
demand :  "  Except  a  man  be  born  again,  he  cannot  see 
the  Kingdom  of  God."  He  meets  his  incredulity  by  a 
more  explicit  statement :  "  Except  a  man  be  born  of  water 
and  of  the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  into  the  Kingdom  of 
God."  ^  The  new  birth  includes  the  penitence,  or  renuncia- 
tion of  the  sinful  life,  of  which  baptism  is  sign,  and  the 
faith  which  claims  the  new  life  from  God  in  fellowship 
with  God.  The  more  explicit  statement  includes  a  per- 
sonal reminiscence  of  Jesus'  own  baptism,  an  immediate 
requirement  of  the  Pharisees,  of  whom  Nicodemus  was 
the  representative,  and  a  universal  demand.  Now  this 
universal  demand  we  must  interpret  in  the  light  both  of 
the  personal  reminiscence  and  the  immediate  requirement. 
What  did  His  baptism  mean  to  Jesus  ?     What  was  need- 

^Lk2P-''.  «Mtl8=«.  3Ju33-8. 


THE   CONTENTS    OF  THE   SERMON  409 

ful  for  Nicodemus  to  become  a  disciple  ?  We  can  illustrate 
it  further  by  the  fall  and  recovery  of  Peter,  the  dejection  of 
the  Christian  community  at  Jesus'  death,  and  the  exulta- 
tion at  Pentecost,  the  change  of  conviction  (not  of  character) 
of  Paul  at  his  conversion.  A  much  wider  view  will  thus 
be  obtained ;  and  a  due  discrimination  will  be  shown  in 
applying  the  demand  to  those  who  have  been  Christian 
since  childhood,  those  who  have  outwardly  conformed  to, 
rather  than  been  inwardly  transformed  by  the  Christian 
faith,  and  those  who  both  outwardly  and  inwardly  have 
been  altogether  strangers  to  grace,  and  even  enemies  of  good- 
ness. This  example  must  surely  enforce  the  need  of  the 
preacher's  never  losing  himself  and  his  hearers  in  abstrac- 
tions, theological  or  ethical,  but  always  keeping  close  to  life 
itself,  personal  experience,  individual  character.  The  writer 
has  found  for  himself  most  advantage  in  thus  presenting 
doctrine  and  practice  alike  in  the  concrete  instances  in  which 
the  Holy  Scriptures  abound.  The  preacher  need  not  confine 
himself  to  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Biography  and  history 
make  rich  provision  for  his  need  of  suitable  material. 

{e)  There  are  two  other  forms  of  reasoning  which  the 
preacher  will  only  rarely  employ,  but  he  cannot  be  for- 
bidden their  use  altogether.  For  the  arguinentum  ad 
hominem  there  is  Jesus'  authority  in  Mt  22*^"^^.  He  puts 
the  opponents  to  silence  by  confronting  them  with  the 
difiSculty  of  David's  calling  the  Messiah,  if  his  son.  Lord. 
Paul  develops  this  type  of  argument  in  Ko  9—11.  Butler's 
Analogy  is  an  instance  of  it  also.  It  is  only  in  controversy 
with  opponents  whom  one  cannot  hope  to  convince  that 
this  argument  is  usefuL  The  reductio  ad  absurdum  is  used 
by  Jesus  in  refuting  the  charge  of  His  league  with  Satan  in 
Mt  1225-30,  and  often  by  Paul  in  Galatians  when  he  shows 
the  absurd  consequences  of  denying  that  faith  is  sufficient 
for  salvation.  These  weapons  of  polemics  the  preacher 
will  seldom,  if  ever,  need  to  use ;  they  may  be  passed  over 
with  this  brief  mention. 

(f)  There  is  a  movement  of  thought  of  which  the  formal 
logic  does  not  take  any  account,  but  which  plays  the  lead- 


410  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

ing  part  in  Hegel's  logic.  It  must  be  recognised  as  a  real 
mental  process.  It  is  the  triple  movement  of  thesis — 
antithesis — synthesis.  The  preacher  will  find  that  it  is  a 
method  which  sustains  the  interest  of  hearers.  To  take 
some  instances,  religion  requires  faith,  morality  demands 
works ;  we  must  have  a  moral  religion  and  a  religious 
morality,  in  which  faith  finds  its  fruits  in  works,  and  works 
find  their  roots  in  faith.  Eeligion  emphasises  the  depen- 
dence of  man  on  God,  morality  his  self-sufficiency  as 
capable  of  obeying  the  categorical  imperative)  both  find 
fulfilment  in  the  liberty  of  the  sons  of  God.  The  condi- 
tions of  the  apostolic  age  are  entirely  different  from  those 
of  the  twentieth  century.  Even  the  life  of  Christians 
outwardly  is  unlike  in  both  ages.  When  the  thesis  and 
antithesis  have  been  clearly  and  fully  presented,  then  the 
synthesis  of  the  essentially  similar  attitude  to  God  and 
goodness  of  all  Christians  can  be  asserted.  Philanthropy 
and  piety  have  often  in  the  doctrine  and  practice  of  the 
Church  been  opposed ;  Christ  unites  them  in  identifying 
Himself  with  even  the  least  of  all  His  brethren.^  Chris- 
tianity as  the  religion  of  reconciliation  is  the  type  of  this 
triple  movement,  and  in  expounding  and  applying  its  teach- 
ing the  preacher  will  often  be  helped  by  letting  his  mind 
work  in  this  way.  It  will  awaken  interest  to  present  a 
problem  so  as  to  lead  the  mind  to  its  solution. 

4.  The  pulpit  seeks  to  reach  and  move  the  whole  man, 
to  convince  the  intellect  that  it  may  constrain  the  will ; 
the  argument  for  the  mind  is  meant  to  be,  and  if  properly 
presented  will  prove  to  be,  an  appeal  to  the  will.  Reasons 
will  in  this  case  become  Tiiotives.  But  the  wiU  can  be 
moved  otherwise  than  by  the  intellect  alone ;  man  has 
emotions,  affections,  sentiments ;  and  the  preacher  cannot 
disregard  and  disdain  this  method  of  approach,  by  which 
many  can  be  reached  more  readily  and  surely  than  through 
the    intellect    alone.^      To   excite    feelings   alone   without 

1  Mt  25«. 

2  Cf.  Vinet,  op.  eit.,  pp.  236-261,  also  Niebergall,    fl^ie  predigen  unr 
deni  modernen  Menschen. 


THE  CONTENTS   OF  THE   SERMON  411 

quickening  the  conscience  and  enlightening  the  reason  is 
unworthy  of  the  pulpit ;  it  should  be  left  to  quacks  and 
not  physicians  of  the  soul.  Such  a  treatment  effects  only 
apparent  and  ephemeral  cures,  as  the  story  of  revivals  in 
many  painful  instances  shows.  (1)  There  are  the  human 
affections,  however,  to  which  the  preacher  may  make  his 
appeal.  "Whatever  be  the  exact  explanation  of  the  baptism 
for  the  dead}  any  possible  explanation  involves  the  recog- 
nition of  human  affection  as  a  legitimate  motive  for  holding 
fast  the  Christian  faith.  Paul's  reference  to  the  faith  of 
Lois  the  grandmother  and  Eunice  the  mother  of  Timothy ,2 
in  order  to  confirm  the  faith  of  Timothy  himself,  is  the  use 
of  the  same  motive.  How  often  does  Jesus  in  His  farewell 
discourse  appeal  to  the  love  of  His  disciples  as  the  motive 
of  their  obedience,  and  how  often  Paul  to  the  affection  of 
his  converts  for  himself !  Paul's  confession,  "  The  love  of 
Christ  constraineth  us,"  ^  discloses  the  deepest,  most  endur- 
ing, and  strongest  motive  of  the  Christian  life,  and  surely 
sanctions  the  use  by  the  preacher  of  even  the  human 
affections  as  motives.  It  is  true  that  human  affections 
may  be  put  to  base  uses ;  parents  may  sin  to  advance  their 
children's  welfare,  but  these  affections  are  themselves  worthy, 
God-given  and  God-like,  when  not  so  prostituted,  and  when 
appealed  to  as  motives  of  goodness  may  be  placed  beside, 
but  always  below,  the  distinctively  Christian  motive  Paul 
confesses.*  Abstractly  the  question  may  be  raised,  although 
concretely  it  does  not  arise,  whether  the  love  for  Christ 
which  the  love  of  Christ  awakens  is  the  highest  motive. 
Kant  in  his  rigorism  would  deny  that  it  is  ;  for  him  respect 
for  the  moral  law  itself  is  the  only  moral  motive.  But  we 
may  well  ask.  Are  not  law  and  morality  mere  abstractions, 
are  they  not  real  only  in  persons  and  the  relations  of 
persons  ?  Is  there  a  higher  moral  good  than  the  love  of 
persons  in  a  holy  fellowship  ?  There  is  no  surer  path  to 
perfection  than  the  love  of  the  Perfect.     The  reason  for 

»1  Co  1529.  =»2Tilo.  3  2  Co  5". 

*  Cf.  the  influence  of  Poinpilia  on  (Jiuseppe  in  Browning's  The  Ring  and 
the  Book,  and  Silas  Marner. 


412  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

seeking  perfection  Jesus  gives  is  the  perfection  of  the 
Father,  and  the  desire  of  the  children  to  share  that  perfec- 
tion.^ Beside  this  surely  Kant's  moral  motive  is  imperfect, 
inadequate  and  ineffective.  The  preacher  will  be  wise,  then, 
if  he  presents  often  with  reverence,  gratitude,  adoration, 
the  love  of  Christ,  most  of  all  in  His  Cross,  to  his  hearers, 
and  also,  but  always  in  subordination  to  this,  the  love  of 
parent,  husband  or  wife,  child,  friend  as  a  motive  of 
godliness  and  goodness. 

(2)  Even  where  there  is  not  what  can  be  properly 
called  affection,  because  the  knowledge  may  be  inadequate, 
and  the  intimacy  not  close  enough,  there  may  be  admiration 
for  greatness,  wisdom,  goodness,  as  embodied  in  the  tale  of 
achievement,  experience,  character.  By  study  of  Paul's 
letters  it  is  quite  conceivable  that  a  man  may  to-day  even 
reach  a  personal  affection  for  the  great  apostle,  for  he  seems 
so  close  to  us,  lays  his  heart  so  bare.  But  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  biography  and  history,  present  to  us  many 
personalities  who  gain  admiration  rather  than  win  affection. 
If  this  admiration  depend  on  what  is  from  the  Christian 
standpoint  admirable,  the  preacher  need  not  hesitate  about 
seeking  to  awaken  it  by  the  way  he  presents  these  personali- 
ties in  his  sermons. 

(3)  There  are  some  persons  (if  few)  who  do  reverence 
truth  and  holiness  in  and  for  themselves,  and  the  preacher 
in  presenting  instances  of  these  qualities  should  not  so 
exclusively  emphasise  the  personal  embodiment  as  to  miss 
the  appeal  which  the  presentation  of  these  excellences  as 
such  may  make  to  some  minds.  The  preacher  may,  and 
should  assume,  that  his  hearers  have  minds  that  desire 
truth,  and  hearts  that  aspire  to  holiness,  and  not  merely 
personal  affection  or  admiration  for  the  persons  in  whom 
these  are  found.  Unless  he  himself  is  of  too  one-sidedly  a 
sentimental  type,  he  will  understand,  because  he  himself 
shares  these  motives.  Worthy  in  themselves,  they  may 
become  tutors  which  lead  to  the  teacher  Christ.^ 

(4)  Even  so  stem  and  rigid  a  moralist  as  Kant  recog- 

1  Mt  5«-^8  2  Qal  42. 


THE   CONTENTS   OF   THE   SERMON  413 

uised  that  man  has  a  desire  for  happiness,  and  he  tried  to 
assure  the  satisfaction  of  that  desire  for  the  good  by  the 
postulate  of  the  Practical  Reason,  God  who  hereafter  will 
bring  character  and  condition  into  accord.  Jesus  Himself 
spoke  of  the  blessedness  of  His  followers,  but  He  did  not 
urge  that  this  blessedness  should  be  sought  as  an  end.  It 
is  one  of  the  surest  results  of  experience,  that  pleasure,  if 
sought  for  its  own  sake,  is  not  found.  The  Bible,  however, 
promises  rewards  of  goodness,  and  threatens  punishment  of 
wickedness  ;  the  Old  Testament  generally  makes  the  present 
life  the  scene  of  this  divine  judgment  of  human  conduct, 
the  New  Testament  for  the  most  part  the  next.  May  the 
preacher  appeal  to  this  motive,  the  desire  for  happiness, 
the  fear  of  pain  and  the  hope  of  pleasure  ?  It  may  at  once 
be  said  that  the  transference  of  the  object  of  choice  from 
the  present  to  the  next  life,  if  it  remain  the  same  in  quality, 
does  not  cleanse  or  hallow  the  motive.  Selfishness  for 
eternity  is  no  better  than  selfishness  for  time.  It  is  to  be 
feared,  however,  that  many  preachers,  who  would  have 
hesitated  about  recommending  honesty  as  the  best  policy, 
have  made  a  practice  of  appealing  to  the  fear  of  hell  or  the 
hope  of  heaven.  Eegarding  this  three  considerations  may 
be  offered,  {a)  The  preacher  is  within  his  right  and  duty 
in  presenting  plainly  and  fully  the  consequences  of  actions 
— good  or  bad.  Men  should  not  be  left  in  ignorance  of 
the  results,  here  and  hereafter,  of  the  deeds  they  do ;  they 
should  be  made  aware  that  in  forming  character  they  are 
fixing  destiny.  Warning  and  encouragement  are  necessary 
elements  in  the  appeal  of  the  pulpit.  (&)  The  preacher 
who  desires  to  maintain  the  Christian  standpoint  will  em- 
phasise inward  rather  than  outward  consequences ;  if  he 
does  mention,  and  it  may  be  necessary  that  he  should 
mention,  physical  pains  or  economic  losses  as  penalties  of 
vice,  he  will  always  lay  more  stress  on  the  moral  deteriora- 
tion and  the  spiritual  departure  from  God,  which  result 
from  sin.  When  he  does  dwell  on  the  blessedness  of  the 
saints,  he  will  so  present  it  that  it  cannot  be  a  bribe  to 
virtue,  but  a  good  which  only  the  good   can   appreciate. 


414  THE    CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

(c)  There  are  hearers  who  can  be  stopped  in  the  path  of  sin 
only  by  being  made  to  acknowledge  that  it  is  also  the  way 
of  folly.  There  are  men  who  will  not  confess,  /  am  a 
sinner,  until  they  have  been  forced  to  admit  to  themselves, 
/  am  a  fooL  The  preacher  must  not  think  only  of  the 
respectable;  he  must  also  regard  the  disreputable.^  He 
must  have  a  message  which  reaches  them.  To  invent 
terrors  in  order  to  impress  is  dishonest ;  to  state  that  the 
wages  of  sin  is  death,  is  to  utter  a  truth  which  some  hearers 
may  need.  This  motive  will  be  so  repugnant  to  his  own 
feeling  that  he  will  not  urge  it  oftener  or  farther  than  his 
responsibility  and  solicitude  for  souls  may  demand.  As 
often  and  as  quickly  as  he  can  he  will  present  the  higher 
motives  which  have  been  mentioned. 

(5)  There  are  men  to  whom  beauty  appeals  more 
strongly  than  does  truth  or  goodness  or  even  happiness. 
Has  the  preacher  to  disregard  their  peculiarity  ?  Or  must 
he  not  seek  the  point  of  contact  with  them  in  their 
sesthetic  sense  ?  To  the  beauty  of  form  in  a  sermon  we 
shall  return  in  a  later  chapter.  What  we  are  now  con- 
cerned with  is  the  question  whether  goodness  and  godliness 
may  be  presented  as  beautiful  in  order  to  be  commended 
to  such  natures.  As  to  the  fact  that  Christian  saintliness 
may  be  lovely  as  well  as  of  good  report,  there  can  be  no 
doubt.2  The  aspiration  of  a  saint  or  the  achievement  of  a 
hero  do  often  gratify  our  sense  of  beauty.  What  God  hath 
joined  together,  why  should  the  preacher  put  asunder  ? 
He  must,  however,  beware  lest  he  give  only  aesthetic 
satisfaction  without  awakening  through  it  ethical  admira- 
tion or  spiritual  appreciation.  The  appeal  to  good  taste 
alone  does  not  afford  a  foundation  solid  enough  for  the 
building  of  a  Christian  life.^ 

^  This  distinction  must  not  be  taken  as  determined  by  social  class  or 
economic  circumstances,  but  by  moral  character. 

^  Phil  4*.  Cf.  the  phrase  in  Ps  110^  the  beauties  of  holiness  (probably  a 
mistranslation),  see  Raskin's  Modem  Painters,  ii.,  for  an  analysis  of  the 
source  of  Beauty. 

^  Sermons  have  been  preached  which  have  commended  Christianity  as 
genteel,  as  suitable  for  a  lady  or  a  gentleman  I 


THE   CONTENTS   OF   THE   SERMON  415 

(6)  Closely  akin  to  the  conscience  is  the  sense  of 
honour,  although  that  sense  may  sometimes  become  very 
artificial.  Christianity  emphasises  humility,  man's  sense  of 
dependence  on  God  ;  this  sense  of  honour  emphasises  rather 
man's  dignity,  the  debt  he  owes  to  his  own  personality ; 
and  yet  they  are  not  necessarily  opposed.  For  Christianity 
does  not  depreciate  nor  degrade  manhood  in  humbling  man. 
If  the  sense  of  honour  in  its  requirements  is  consistent 
with  the  dictates  of  conscience  the  preacher  may  claim  it 
as  an  ally,  while  careful  to  assert  the  ultimate  moral 
authority,  the  will  of  God,  and  not  what  man  thinks  of 
himself,  and  wants  to  make  of  himself.^  To  young  people 
at  a  certain  stage  of  development,  it  is  quite  legitimate  to 
point  out  that  a  certain  course  of  conduct  is  not  "  cricket," 
that  it  is  not  "  playing  the  game."  That  a  man  should 
respect  himself  may  be  urged  as  an  encouragement  to  the 
right  course ;  that  he  should  shrink  from  being  ashamed  of 
himself  as  a  warning  from  the  wrong  course.  Care,  how- 
ever, must  be  taken  to  point  out  that  the  sense  of  honour 
is  not  always  a  sure  guide,  and  the  feeling  of  shame  an 
adequate  defence ;  for  the  artificial  standard  of  a  society 
may  exalt  what  should  be  abased — e.g.,  duelling  and  "  debts 
of  honour" — and  abase  what  should  be  exalted.  It  may 
be  a  very  important  function  of  the  preacher  to  correct  the 
moral  fashions  of  an  age  or  a  society.  Only  in  so  far  then 
as  the  sense  of  honour  and  the  Christian  ideal  point  the 
same  way,  can  the  preacher  use  it  as  a  motive,  and  that 
even  only  that  he  may  as  soon  as  he  can  bring  higher 
motives  into  play. 

(7)  To  chastise  folly  and  vice  the  satirists  have  used 
ridicule.  The  Christian  preacher  will  make  a  very  limited 
use  (if  at  all)  of  this  dangerous  motive.  It  does  not 
accord  with  the  Christian  spirit,  and  its  effects,  if  there 
are  any,  fall  short  of  what  the  Christian  preacher  desires. 
The  cross  of  Jesus  Christ  does  not  make  sin  look  absurd, 

1  The  preacher  should  not,  however,  imitate  the  mother  who  rebuked 
her  boy  for  swearing  in  the  words,  ' '  It's  wicked  ;  and  what's  worse,  it's 
vulgar. " 


416  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

it  makes  it  appear  tragic  beyond  all  telling.  Eidicule 
may  restrain  from  the  evil  way ;  it  cannot  constrain  to  the 
path  of  life.^ 

(8)  While  ridicule  is  usually  out  of  place  in  the  pulpit, 
the  writer  cannot  persuade  himself  that  humour  is,  for 
humour  seems  to  him  to  be  too  good  a  gift  of  God  in 
lightening  the  burdens  and  easing  the  yoke  of  life.  With- 
out entering  on  the  interminable  debate  of  what  humour  is, 
it  seems  to  him  that  the  contrasts,  contradictions  and 
incongruities  of  life  would  often  be  too  grievous  to  be 
borne  did  not  humour  relieve  the  strain.  The  preacher 
should  not  go  in  search  of  funniness ;  but  if  he  is  so 
constituted,  it  will  often  be  impossible  for  him  to  escape 
humour.  He  will  not  indulge  himself  in  it,  but  will  use 
it  only  in  so  far  as  he  can  by  it  more  effectively  reach 
others.  As  the  attempt  to  be  humorous  must  end  in 
disastrous  failure ;  and  as  a  man  may  use  his  humour  only 
if  he  cannot  help  himself,  further  counsel  on  this  matter 
would  be  of  no  advantage. 

(9)  In  religious  revivals  especially,  but  in  some  degree 
in  all  assemblies  for  worship,  a  motive  comes  into  play, 
which  may  be  distinguished  from  personal  affection  on 
the  one  hand  or  moral  obligation  on  the  other ;  it  is  what 
may  be  called  social  feeling.  Men  will  be  moved  to  joy  or 
sorrow,  or  penitence  or  faith  in  the  crowd  by  means  which 
would  not  have  touched  them  alone.  There  is  always  the 
danger  of  reaction  when  this  stimulus  has  been  removed ; 
and  yet  the  preacher  in  measure  of  his  emotional  intensity, 
his  personal  magnetism,  will,  as  it  were,  fuse  a  multitude 
into  one  mass  of  emotion,  aspiration,  resolve.  The  danger 
he  must  himself  remove  by  his  insistence  on  the  necessity 
of  deliberate  and  voluntary  individual  decision  ;  and  he 
will  never  snatch  a  forced,  hasty  resolve  from  this  excite- 
ment of  the  crowd.2 

*  The  writer  has  twice  heard  sermons  in  which  satire  was  the  dominating 
feature,  and  the  effect  on  himself  was  irritation  at  the  preachers  despite  the 
amazing  cleverness  of  the  performances. 

^  The  psychology  of  the  crowd  has  in  recent  years  received  special 
attention ;    see    Davenport's    Primitive    Traits    in    Religious    Bevivala ; 


THE  CONTENTS  OF  THE   SERMON  417 

5.  The  preacher  does  not  preach  himself;  and  yet  he 
cannot  keep  himself  out  of  the  preaching.^  Sometimes  it 
is  quite  lawful  and  needful  that  he  should  enforce  his 
appeal  by  the  testimony  of  his  own  experience  of  the 
truth  and  grace  of  Christ.  A  man  of  fine  feeling  shrinks 
from  carrying  his  "heart  on  his  sleeve,"  but  it  may  be  his 
debt  to  his  hearers  that  he  enrich  them  by  that  wherewith 
God  has  enriched  him.  But  his  aim  must  be  not  to 
magnify  himself,  but  his  Lord.  To  his  own  character  a 
man  will  not  point,  although  his  character  is  adding  to  or 
deducting  from  his  preaching  constantly.  He  may  enforce 
an  appeal  for  total  abstinence  by  giving  the  reasons  why  he 
has  taken  that  course,  and  the  advantage  he  has  gained  in 
following  it.2  (1)  His  personality  will  give  unction  to  his 
reaching,  or  withhold  it. 

"This  word,"  says  Vinet,  "taken  in  its  etymology  and 
in  its  original  acceptation,  does  not  designate  any  special 
quality  of  the  sermon,  but  rather  the  grace  and  the  efficacy 
which  are  attached  to  it  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  a  kind  of  seal 
and  sanction  which  shews  itself  less  by  external  signs  than 
by  the  impression  which  souls  receive.  But  when,  in  going 
back  to  the  cause  of  this  effect,  one  distinguishes  particularly 
certain  characteristics,  it  is  to  the  reunion  of  these  character- 
istics that  one  has  given  the  name  of  unction.  Unction 
seems  to  me  the  total  characterisfcic  of  the  Gospel,  doubtless 
recognisable  in  each  of  its  parts,  but  perceived  especially  in 
the  whole ;  it  is  the  general  savour  of  Christianity ;  it  is  a 
seriousness  accompanied  by  tenderness,  a  severity  tempered 
by  sweetness,  dignity  united  to  intimacy :  the  true  tempera- 
ment of  the  Christian  disposition,  in  which,  according  to 
the  expression  of  the  psalmist,  'goodness  and  truth  have 
met  each  other ;  righteousness  and  peace  have  kissed  each 
other.' "  » 

A  mass  of  metal  needs  a  certain  temperature  to  fuse 
together,  and  to  be  moulded  into  a  thing  of  beauty  or  use ; 

McDougall's  An  Iniroductimi  to  Social  Psychology  ;  Giddings'  Inclusive 
Sociology  and  Elements  of  Sociology. 

1  Cf.  Vinet,  op.  cit.,  pp.  261-295.     Christlieb,  op.  cit.,  pp.  807-311. 

2  It  may  sometimes  be  Ms  duty  to  state  an  unpopular  opinion  as  his 
own,  or  to  dissociate  himself  from  the  popular  sentiments  of  the  times. 

»  Op.  cit.,  pp.  261-262. 


418  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

and  in  the  same  way  the  contents  of  a  sermon  need  a 
certain  spiritual  temperature  to  become  truly  and  fully 
Christian.  There  is  emotion,  and  it  should  be  deep  and 
strong,  but  it  is  emotion  purified  and  vivified  by  the  Spirit 
of  God ;  and  a  sermon  may  be  emotional,  and  yet  lack 
unction.  It  cannot  be  forced  at  will ;  it  comes  only  as 
Christian  experience  advances  and  Christian  character 
develops ;  and  the  human  personality  thus  becomes  the 
habitation  of  God  by  His  Spirit. 

(2)  It  is  this  unction  that  will  give  the  preacher 
authority,  and  the  only  authority  it  should  be  his  desire  to 
possess.^  The  place,  the  time,  the  object  of  the  gathering, 
the  Scriptures  from  which  he  takes  his  text,  the  Church  of 
which  he  is  a  recognised  minister  do  invest  his  utterance 
with  authority  for  many  hearers.  In  the  chapter  dealing 
with  the  preacher's  credentials  the  source  of  his  authority 
was  indicated.  He  uses,  and  does  not  abuse  any  authority 
that  comes  to  him  in  these  ways  only  as  it  is  the  truth  he 
preaches,  and  only  as  the  personality  through  which  the 
truth  comes  is  fit  and  worthy  of  the  high  and  holy  calling. 

6.  It  is  necessary  to  answer  a  question  regarding  the 
contents  of  the  sermon  which  it  may  be  some  of  the  readers 
will  have  already  been  impatiently  asking.  How  can  we 
gather  the  material  which  has  been  described  in  this  general 
statement  ?  The  preacher  should  not  live  from  hand  to 
mouth ;  he  should  have  a  well-furnished  storehouse.  It 
has  already  been  urged  that  he  should  keep  two  lists  going, 
one  of  texts,  and  one  of  subjects ;  and   to  each  text  he 

^  See  Vinet,  op.  cit. ,  pp.  266-282.  If  the  preacher  has  authority  over 
his  congregation,  it  may  be  needful  for  him  sometimes  to  use  it  in  the  way 
of  rebuke ;  but  the  relation  must  be  so  intimate  that  this  tone  will  not 
offend,  but  improve,  and  the  occasion  must  be  adequate  to  justify  its 
assumption.  Character,  experience  and  age  add  weight  to  any  such 
utterance.  Irony  should  be  very  sparingly  used,  but  cannot  altogether  be 
forbidden,  when  the  offence  calls  for  such  chastisement,  as  in  Jn  10'^. 
While  anger  as  personal  resentment  is  out  of  place  in  the  pulpit,  yet 
indignation  as  the  inevitable  emotional  reaction  of  the  good  man  against 
evil  need  not  be  repressed,  although  for  iuU  effect  it  must  be  restrained  in 
the  language  in  which  it  is  expressed.  The  preacher  may  have  "the  scorn 
of  scorn,  the  bate  of  hate,  the  love  of  love. " 


THE   CONTENTS   OF   THE   SERMON  419 

should  attach  the  subject  or  subjects  which  it  suggests  to 
him,  and  to  each  subject  the  texts  which  would  be  suitable. 
What  more  should  he  do  in  addition  to  the  general  prepara- 
tion already  spoken  of?  (1)  One  noted  evangelist,  D.  L. 
Moody,  wrote  the  texts  that  laid  hold  on  him  on  envelopes. 
When  in  his  reading  or  his  meditation  or  his  contact  with 
men  anything  came  to  him  bearing  on  one  of  these  texts, 
he  wrote  it  on  a  slip  of  paper  and  put  it  into  the  envelope. 
When  he  had  gathered  enough  material  in  that  way  he 
worked  it  up  into  a  sermon.^  A  sermon  so  produced  is 
likely  to  be  a  cunningly-fashioned  mosaic,  rather  than  a 
developing  organism,  unless  the  vital  and  vigorous  person- 
ality, such  as  was  Moody's,  fuse  all  the  elements  together. 
But  the  writer  has  heard  sermons  so  prepared  where  no 
such  fusion  had  taken  place ;  they  were  like  Joseph's  "  coat 
of  many  colours,"  ^  not  like  Christ's  undergarment  that  was 
"  without  seam  from  the  top  woven  throughout."  ^  They 
were  made  and  had  not  grown  in  the  mind  and  life  of  the 
preacher. 

(2)  There  are  preachers  who  make  most  diligent  use 
of  notebooks  carefully  indexed,  in  which  they  collect  quota- 
tions, illustrations,  arguments ;  in  preparing  a  sermon  they 
draw  on  the  treasures  they  have  there  gathered.  If  they 
can  remain  masters  of  their  material,  the  sermon  may  be  a 
living  growth;  but  the  danger  here  is  that  material  may  be 
used  because  it  is  there  to  be  used,  rather  than  because  it 
is  the  most  appropriate  for  the  subject.*  They  may,  as 
was  said  by  a  French  girl  of  the  first  English  preacher  she 
heard,  "  say  too  many  things."  There  may  be  variety,  even 
superabundant,  but  not  the  necessary  unity.  The  writer 
has  never  been  able  to  keep  such  notebooks,  or  to  prepare 

1  ITie  Life  of  D.  L.  Moody,  by  his  Son,  pp.  381-383. 

*  Gn  37*.  In  the  figurative  use  of  the  words  of  Scripture  disregard  of 
the  exact  translation  may  be  excused. 

3Jnl9^. 

*  It  is  this  peril  that  Watson  in  his  book,  The  Cure  of  S<nds  (pp.  12-14), 
has  in  view  in  the  process  he  describes  as  Sepa/ration  ;  although  he  applies  it 
specially  to  the  ideas,  it  no  less  holds  good  of  all  the  other  material  of  the 


420  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

sermons  in  such  a  way,  but  he  would  not  impose  his 
inability  as  a  limitation  on  preachers  who  can  so  discharge 
their  task. 

(3)  The  method  he  has  found  best  is  to  keep  text  and 
subject  in  his  mind  for  as  long  a  time  as  possible,  so  as  to 
let  his  thoughts  gather  around  this  centre  by  what  might 
be  called  the  inevitable  attraction  of  a  natural  affinity,  so 
that  the  results  of  his  study  and  experience  come  not  as 
an  addition  to,  but  as  a  development  of  the  text  and 
subject.^  The  disadvantage  of  this  method  (if  it  be  so)  is 
that  there  will  be  very  little  ornamentation  about  the 
sermon,  only  the  quotations  and  illustrations  which  spring 
of  themselves  out  of  meditation,  and  that  the  preaching 
will  not  please  the  hearers  who  want  the  latest  novel  or 
review  article  mentioned  to  assure  them  that  the  preacher 
is  up  to  date.  One  advantage  may  be  claimed  for  it,  that 
the  sermon  will  be  a  developing  organism,  the  living 
product  of  a  living  soul. 

^  Quotations  and  illustrations  will  then  be  relevant  and  consequently 
illuminative.  They  will  deepen  interest  and  quicken  intelligence,  and  not 
distract  attention.  A  parade  of  learning  in  the  abundance  of  the  quotations 
and  illustrations  shows  not  only  a  lack  of  judgment  regarding  the  effective- 
ness of  a  sermon,  but  is  an  offence  against  good  taste,  as  the  preacher  is 
obtruding  himself  instead  of  getting  the  congregation  absorbed  in  his  subject. 
Quotations  which  cannot  at  once  be  understood  or  illustrations  that  need  to 
be  explained  are  altogether  out  of  place  in  the  pulpit,  where  the  object  is  to 
carry  the  message  as  simply  and  directly  as  possible,  A  few  sentences  from 
Jowett's  The  Preacher,  p.  143,  may  be  added  :  "  An  illustration  that  requires 
explanation  is  worthless.  A  lamp  should  do  its  own  work.  I  have  seen 
illustrations  that  were  like  pretty  drawing-room  lamps,  calling  attention  to 
themselves.  A  real  preacher's  illustrations  are  like  street  lamps,  scarcely 
noticed,  but  throwing  floods  of  light  upon  the  road.  Ornamental  lamps 
will  be  of  little  or  no  use  to  you  ;  honest  street  lamps  will  serve  your  purpose 
at  every  turning."  For  a  further  discussion  of  the  subject,  the  writer  may 
refer  to  his  book,  A  Guide  to  Preachers,  pp.  224-244. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE  ARRANGEMENT  OF  THE  SERMON. 

1.  We  now  pass  to  the  second  part  of  Ehetoric,  which 
deals  with  the  disposition,  or  arrangement  of  the  matter 
which    by    the   invention  has  been  gathered.^     There  are 

^  Regarding  the  need  of  order  in  a  sermon,  Vinet  quotes  Quintilian 
(Book  VII.  Preface).  "  It  is  not  without  reason  that  to  the  rules  of  invention 
we  add  those  of  disposition,  since  without  the  second  of  these  sections,  the 
first  is  nothing.  Remove  from  one  place  to  another  any  part  whatever  of 
the  human  body,  or  of  that  of  an  animal,  even  if  none  is  lacking,  you  have 
produced  a  monster.  However  little  you  displace  a  member,  you  rob  it  of 
its  power  with  its  use ;  an  army  in  disorder  becomes  a  hindrance  to  itself. 
Those  do  not  appear  to  me  to  deceive  themselves,  who  maintain  that  the  dis- 
position of  the  parts  of  an  object  constitutes  the  very  natme  of  that  object ; 
that  disposition  changed,  all  is  about  to  perish.  A  discourse  deprived  of  this 
virtue  is  stormily  tossed  about ;  bubbling  without  overflowing,  it  has  no 
consistency.  Like  a  man  who  goes  astray  in  the  night  in  unknown  places, 
it  repeats  a  good  many  things,  it  omits  a  good  many  others  ;  and  not  having 
determined  either  the  starting-point  or  the  goal,  it  does  not  obey  any 
purpose  but  chance"  (op.  cit.,  pp.  315-316).  The  diff"erence  that  a  plan 
makes  to  the  ease  and  worth  of  the  preacher's  own  thinking  out  of  his 
subject  he  shows  by  a  quotation  from  Buff"on  (Discours  sur  le  style).  "  It  is 
for  lack  of  a  plan,  it  is  because  he  has  not  reflected  enough  on  his  subject, 
that  a  man  of  ability  finds  himself  perplexed,  and  does  not  know  where  to 
begin  to  write  ;  he  perceives  at  one  time  a  great  number  of  ideas,  and  as  he 
has  neither  compared  them,  nor  subordinated  them,  nothing  determines  him 
to  prefer  some  to  others.  He  remains  then  in  perplexity  ;  but  when  once 
he  will  have  made  a  plan  for  himself,  when  once  he  will  have  gathered 
together  and  put  in  order  all  the  thoughts  essential  to  his  subject,  he  will 
easily  perceive  the  moment  at  which  he  should  take  the  pen,  he  will  feel 
the  point  of  maturity  in  the  work  of  the  mind,  he  will  be  urged  to  make  it 
unfold,  he  will  even  have  pleasure  only  in  writing  ;  the  ideas  will  follow 
one  another  readily,  and  the  style  will  be  natural  and  easy  ;  warmth  will  be 
bom  from  this  pleasure,  will  spread  everywhere,  and  will  give  life  to  each 
expression ;  all  will  become  more  and  more  alive,  the  tone  will  rise,  the 
objects  will  take  colour,  and  feeling,  joining  itself  to  the  light,  will  increase 
it,  will  carry  it  further,  will  make  it  pass  from  what  one  says  to  what  one  is 

going  to  say,  and  the  style  will  become  interesting  and  luminous  "  (op.  cit., 

481 


422  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

sermons,  in  wliich  the  preacher  starts  with  a  text,  or 
subject,  and  then  wanders  on  at  his  own  sweet  will,  as 
thoughts  about  the  subject  come  to  him,  and  in  which  it 
would  be  very  difficult  to  discover  the  laws  of  the  associa- 
tion of  ideas  which  have  guided  (if  indeed  they  have)  his 
erratic  steps.  A  genius  might  make  even  such  a  sermon 
interesting ;  but  such  a  method  is  not  for  ordinary  men, 
and  a  preacher  is  wiser  to  assume  that  he  belongs  to  the 
second  and  not  the  first  class.  The  literary  essay  without 
plan  is  responsible  for  a  good  deal  of  the  loss  of  influence 
of  the  pulpit.  The  sermon  is  not  to  be  read,  but  to  be 
heard ;  and  it  must  be,  therefore,  cast  in  such  a  mould  as 
will  secure  the  unity  of  purpose  and  continuity  of  develop- 
ment which  speech  to  be  remembered  and  to  produce  a 
definite  result  must  possess.  One  disadvantage  of  the  read 
sermon,  or  the  written  sermon  which  is  committed  to 
memory  almost  verbatim,  is  that  the  preacher  is  prone  to 
forget  that  his  hearers  want  to  carry  away  his  sermon  as  a 
whole,  and  that  he  should  make  it  as  easy  for  them  to 
remember  a  great  deal  of  it  as  he  can.  The  man  who  has 
to  remember  his  sermon  not  by  mechanical  repetition 
merely,  has  to  cast  it  into  a  form  in  which  he  can  remember 
it ;  and  if  he  does,  it  will  be  easier  for  his  hearers  also. 

2.  We  may  then  take  it  for  granted  that  the  sermon 
must  be  arranged  according  to  some  definite  plan,  and  that 
it  is  desirable  to  have  such  a  plan  as  the  preacher  will 
easily  remember  himself,  and  as  his  hearers  will  find  it 
possible  to  recall.  Should  the  preacher  then  have  definite 
divisions,  and  should  he  take  his  hearers  into  his  confidence, 
and  intimate  them?i     (1)  The  elaborate  structures  of  a 

pp.  319-320).  Thus  skilful  disposition  brings  with  it  easy  invention  and 
fine  expression.  Order  is  not  only  heaven's  first  law,  but  the  first  law  of  all 
rational  and  aesthetic  production  as  well  as  moral  conduct  for  men.  Vinet's 
discussion  of  the  importanceof  the  disposition  deserves  study  (pp.  308-324). 
Cf.  Christlieb,  Homiletic,  pp.  312-366  ;  Watson's  The  Cure  of  Souls,  pp. 
29-51  ;  Hoyt,  The  Work  of  Preaching,  pp.  157-207. 

'  The  writer  has  discussed  the  various  modes  of  treating  a  text  in  hia 
book,  A  Ghiide  to  Preachers,  pp.  211-215.  The  expository  and  the  topiral 
have  already  been  discussed  in  this  volume.  The  first  lends  itself  most 
readily  to  the  analytic,  the  treatment  of  the  thought  in  each  part  of  the  text 


J 


THE  ARRANGEMENT  OF  THE  SERMON         423 

former  time  with  a  third  or  fourth  subdivision  of  a  sixth 
or  seventh  division  would  only  excite  irritation  or  ridicule 
to-day.  Specimens  have  been  given  in  the  first  section  of 
this  volume  of  the  length  to  which  some  preachers  were 
wont  to  go.  Some  preachere,  innocent  of  Hegel's  phil- 
osophy, have  had  a  fondness  for  a  triple  movement,  a 
firstly,  secondly,  thirdly  in  addition  to  an  introduction  and 
a  conclusion.  But  there  is  no  necessity  for  any  particular 
number  of  heads.  If  there  are  to  be  divisions,  it  is  evident 
that  two  must  be  the  minimum,  and  within  the  limits  of 
time  allowed  for  a  sermon  in  these  days,  it  is  not  likely 
that  more  than  four  or  at  most  five  could  be  properly  dealt 
with.  The  purpose  of  the  sermon,  its  text  or  subject,  must 
determine  what  the  divisions  are  to  be.  Just  as  it  is  good 
for  the  preacher's  clearaess  of  mind  that  he  should  take 
the  trouble  to  get  a  title  for  his  sermon  that  will  express  its 
intention,  so  it  is  good  for  him  to  take  trouble  with  his 
divisions,  so  that  they  do  not  overlap,  involving  repetition, 
and  yet  cover  the  subject,  or  at  least  as  much  of  it  as  he 
intends  to  deal  with  in  his  sermon,  so  as  to  secure  adequacy 
of  treatment.  If  he  has  skill  in  putting  his  heads  in 
memorable  form  by  alliteration,  assonance,  or  any  verbal 
resemblance,  he  should  not  scorn  his  gift.  But  here  arti- 
ficiality and  ingenuity  must  be  avoided ;  the  treatment  of 
the  subject  must  not  be  sacrificed  in  any  way  for  the  sake 
of  smart  or  "  catchy  "  heads.  Only  what  assists  memory 
and  promotes  intelligence  is  here  admissible.  The  danger 
just  mentioned  arises  only  when  the  preacher  has  bis 
hearers  in  view ;  and  we  are  thus  led  to  answer  the  second 
question :  Should  the  plan  be  communicated  to  the 
congregation  ? 

(2)  In  order  that  the  hearers  may  be  taken  into 
confidence,  it  is  not  necessary  for  the  preacher  to  break  up 
his  sermon   into    a  series   of   addresses,  to  stop  with  his 

separately,  the  second  to  the  synthetic,  the  presentation  of  each  of  these 
thoughts  as  interpreting  one  subject.  In  the  interrogative  mode  we  seek  to 
answer  the  questions  the  text  starts  in  our  minds  ;  in  the  corrective,  to 
expose  the  errors  of  thought  and  life  by  its  truth  ;  in  the  illustrative,  to  give 
concrete  instances  of  the  general  principle  it  contains ;  and  so  on. 


424  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

firstly,  and  make  a  fresh  start  with  his  secondly ;  such  a 
method  prevents  the  cumulative  effect  of  the  sermon. 
The  joints  should  not  be  heard  cracking  as  the  body  moves. 
The  transitions  should  be  effected  more  skilfully  than  in 
that  way.  A  sentence  may  sum  up  the  first  division  and 
give  the  start  to  the  second,  and  so  on.  The  hearers, 
however,  should  be  able  to  pass  with  the  preacher  from 
one  division  of  his  subject  to  another.^  The  writer,  at  least, 
when  he  is  hearing  a  sermon,  wishes  and  tries  to  discover 
the  plan,  even  when  the  preacher  has  not  formally  disclosed 
it.  But  after  the  preacher  has  introduced  and  stated  his 
subject,  should  he  or  should  he  not  indicate  the  way  he 
intends  to  treat  it  ?  However  informally,  he  may  show 
his  hearers  the  goal  to  which,  and  the  course  by  which, 
they  are  going  to  be  led.  Firstly,  secondly,  etc.,  may  be 
avoided,  if  it  is  thought  necessary,  and  yet  the  structure  of 
the  sermon  may  be  given  in  a  few  sentences.  The  objection 
to  any  such  disclosure  is  often  made,  that  it  robs  the  sermon 
of  the  element  of  surprise,  which  keeps  the  attention, 
and  holds  the  interest  of  the  hearers.  He  must  be  indeed 
a  poor  preacher  who  gives  the  impression  when  he  has 
stated  his  subject  and  divisions  that  his  hearers  already 
know  all  that  he  can  say  to  them.  Should  not  the  state- 
ment of  the  subject  and  divisions  rather  awaken  interest, 
excite  ciiriosity  ?  Should  not  the  hearers  be  asking  them- 
selves :  How  is  he  going  to  work  out  the  subject  according 
to  that  plan  ?  The  statement  should,  as  it  were,  lay  before 
the  hearers  the  problem  of  which  the  sermon  is  the  solution, 
and  so  arouse  their  desire  to  share  in  the  process  of 
solution.  As  far  as  the  writer  has  been  able  to  gather 
from  his  intercourse  with  hearers,  there  is  a  general 
preference  for  a  knowledge  both  of  subject  and  divisions, 
as  the  pew  likes  to  be  taken  into  confidence  by  the  pulpit, 
and  not  to  be  mystified  by  it ;  and  further,  there  is  no 
general  objection  to  having  the  heads  of  the  sermon  dis- 
tinctly indicated  even  in  the  formal  ^rs%,  secondly,  lastly, 
and  in  as  easily  remembered  words  or  phrases  as  possible. 
1  See  Watson's  The  Cure  of  Souls,  pp.  32-33. 


THE   ARRANGEMENT  OF   THE   SERMON         425 

3.  It  may  be  objected,  however,  that  such  a  division  is 
a  hindrance  to  the  unity  which  should  mark  every  sermon. 
Dr.  Jowett  insists  that  every  sermon  should  contain  only 
one  thought,  and  that  that  thought  should  be  presented  in 
one  sentence,  in  which  it  is  made  quite  clear  to  the  hearers. 
This  one  thought  he  himself  presents  in  a  great  variety  of 
ways ;  in  this  he  is  following  the  method  of  Dr.  Chalmers.* 
The  danger  of  the  method  is,  as  has  been  shown  in  a 
quotation  on  a  previous  page^  regarding  Dr.  Chalmers' 
preaching,  repetition,  an  absence  of  progress.  In  the  hands 
of  a  great  preacher  as  Dr.  Jowett  is,  it  may  amply  justify 
itself.  For  ordinary  men  it  is  not  to  be  urged.  In  short, 
there  must  be  freedom  in  the  pulpit.  There  must  be 
unity ;  but  unity  may  be  secured  in  various  ways.  There 
can  be  unity  in  variety,  so  long  as  ail  the  thoughts  in  a 
sermon  combine,  and  do  not  conflict.  To  deal  with  a  series 
of  subjects  suggested  by  the  successive  clauses  of  a  text  is 
certainly  not  the  way  to  preach  effectively.  To  determine 
what  the  subject  will  be,  and  then  to  use  the  different 
clauses  of  the  text  to  present  different  yet  complementary 
aspects  of  the  subject,  is  the  method  by  which  most 
preachers  are  likely  to  do  their  best.  Care  is  necessary  to 
keep  the  parts  duly  subordinate  to  the  whole  ;  their  interest 
should  lie  not  in  themselves,  but  only  as  parts  of  the  whole. 
Attention  must  not  be  distracted  from,  but  interest  con- 
centrated on  the  whole,  so  that  the  logical  as  well  as  the 
aesthetic  demand  on  the  sermon  should  be  met. 

4.  We  may  now  look  at  the  parts  of  which  a  sermon 
will  usually  consist.  In  doing  this  nothing  should  be 
further  from  our  thoughts  than  the  attempt  to  provide  a 
Procrustes  bed  into  which  each  sermon  must  be  forced. 
The  art  of  the  preacher  does  not  lie  in  any  prescribed 
form,  but  in  his  best  use  for  his  purpose  of  any  form.  It 
is  usual  for  the  sermon  to  begin  with  the  announcement  of 
the  text ;  and  in  a  congregation  of  Christian  worshippers 
no  better  course  can  be  followed,  as  the  Holy  Scriptures 

^  See  The  Preacher :  his  Life  amd  Work,  pp.  134-135. 
2  See  p.  225. 


426  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

are  the  commou  ground  on  which  preacher  and  hearers 
meet.  He  desires  to  preach  only  what  is  in  accord  with 
the  Word  of  God  as  therein  contained,  and  they  are  ready 
to  hear  whatever  within  this  limit  he  desires  to  say  to 
them.  If,  however,  a  preacher  found  himself  addressing 
an  audience  for  the  most  of  whom  this  assumption  did  not 
hold,  he  would  be  in  no  way  unfaithful  to  his  calling,  but 
only  exercising  the  wisdom  which  it  demands,  if  he  were 
to  begin  with  some  common  interest  in  order  to  lead  his 
hearers  to  desire  the  Word  of  God,  and  if  when  that  desire 
was  awakened,  he  only  then  intimated  his  text.  It  was 
Jesus'  method  to  attach  himself  to  the  circumstances  of 
the  moment.  With  the  woman  of  Samaria  He  begins  with 
a  request  for  water.^  Paul  followed  in  his  Master's  steps. 
At  Athens  he  started  from  the  altar  to  An  Unknown  Ood? 
It  would  be  well  if  Christian  preachers  always  claimed  a 
like  freedom,  when  the  circumstances  demanded  a_  break 
with  hallowed  custom.^ 

5.  The  announcement  of  the  text  is  usually  followed 
by  an  Introduction.  As  we  have  already  noted,  some  of 
the  Pietists  of  Germany  used  the  introduction  to  deal  with 
some  passage  of  scripture  which  was  not  included  in  the 
pericopes  prescribed  for  the  worship  of  the  Church.  While 
the  modern  preacher  is  not  likely  to  err  in  this  way,  he 
still  runs  the  peril  of  making  his  introduction  too  long  by 
admitting  into  it  much  that  is  not  strictly  relevant  to  his 
subject.     It  must   be  insisted   that  the  sole  end  of    the 

1  Jn  4'- «.  ^  Ac  17*3. 

*  We  do  well  to  learn  what  the  pew  thinks :  "  I  venture  to  think  it  is 
unfortunate,"  says  Mr.  G.  W.  Pepper,  "that  an  unbending  formula  should 
control  the  beginning  of  the  sermon.  We  who  are  accustomed  to  the  argu- 
ment of  cases  in  court  are  aware  that  much  of  the  effectiveness  of  the  oral 
argument  depends  upon  its  opening.  The  method  of  opening  should  differ 
according  to  the  nature  of  the  case.  As  one  of  the  lawyers  in  the  crowd,  I 
suggest  that  the  preacher  should  allow  himself  a  similar  liberty.  .  .  .  My 
suggestion  is  that  the  sermon  should  be  begun  in  the  way  most  appropriate  to 
the  particular  occasion,  and  that,  more  often  than  not,  this  will  require  some 
other  opening  than  the  announcement  of  a  text  from  Scripture  "  {A  Foice 
from  th£  Crmvd,  pp.  18-19).  Be  it  observed,  this  is  not  a  reason  against 
having  a  text,  only  against  always  beginning  the  sermon  with  a  text. 


THE  ARRANGEMENT   OF   THE   SERMON  427 

introduction  is  to  introdtice  the  subject  to  the  congregation, 
to  prepare  them  to  receive  in  the  best  way  what  the 
preacher  has  prepared  for  them.^  It  is  possible,  accord- 
ingly, that  an  audience  might  be  so  ready  for  a  preacher's 
theme  that  no  introduction  might  be  necessary,  and  he 
could  at  once  enter  on  its  discussion. 

(1)  In  some  cases,  when  the  text  needs  little  exposi- 
tion, a  few  sentences  giving  the  reason  why  the  text  has 
been  chosen,  connecting  the  subject  of  the  sermon  with  the 
text,  or,  if  the  sermon  is  one  of  a  series,  connecting  its 
contents  with  what  has  already  gone  before,  may  be  all  that 
is  necessary,  and  the  preacher  should  never  put  into  his 
introduction  more  than  is  necessary  to  win  interest,  and  to 
fix  attention.  The  circumstances  under  which  the  text 
has  come  to  him  may  serve  as  an  introduction,  if  the  state- 
ment will  for  the  hearers  enhance  the  value  of  the  subject 
to  be  dealt  with.  A  passage  or  a  sentence  in  a  book  which 
is  just  being  widely  read  may  have  suggested  text  and 
subject,  and  the  preacher  would  not  be  wise  if  he  altogether 
neglected  such  a  point  of  contact  with  his  hearers.  While 
trivial  occurrences  or  sensational  happenings  should  not  be 
exploited  by  the  pulpit,  yet  an  event  may  be  important 
enough  for  the  notice  of  the  preacher  who  as  prophet  is  to 
discern  the  signs  of  the  times.  He  may  begin  with  a  brief 
reference  to  it  as  the  reason  why  he  is  dealing  with  the 
subject  A  correspondence  in  the  daily  press  may  be  so 
concerned  with  interests  of  the  Kingdom  of  God  that  the 
preacher  may  connect  his  subject,  if  there  be  a  real  and 
not  a  forced  connection,  with  this  discussion.  An  opinion 
may  have  been  expressed  by  a  prominent  man  and  may 
have  attracted  much  notice ;  in  the  interests  of  the  applica- 
tion of  the  Christian  ideal,  the  preacher  may  introduce  his 
subject  as  a  direct  challenge.  It  was  with  such  a  challenge 
Jesus  met  Nicodemus.^  By  the  opening  sentence  to  excite 
surprise  is  not  illegitimate,  if  the  content  of  the  sermon 


'  See  Vinet,  pp.  863-868;  Ohriatlieb,  pp.  362-356  ;  Hoyt,  op.  eit., 
167-170. 


pp. 


428  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

justify  such  a  beginning.  The  preacher  must  be  a  man 
alive  among  men,  reading  the  newspaper  as  well  as  study- 
ing the  Bible,  so  that  he  may  bring  the  eternal  truth  home 
to  the  temporary  situation,  outward  or  inward,  of  his 
hearers,  as  freshly  and  forcefully  as  he  can.^ 

(2)  Often  the  text  chosen  will  need  some  exposition, 
and  while  exegesis  is  not  the  main  function  of  the  pulpit, 
the  preacher  will  make  Jiis  sermons  all  the  more  useful 
and  fruitful  to  his  hearers,  if,  when  his  text  requires  it,  he 
states  all  that  is  needful  for  intelligence  and  interest.  If 
the  text  be  a  sentence  in  a  continuous  argument,  the 
purpose  of  the  argument  and  its  course  may  be  briefly 
stated.  If  the  text  be  an  utterance  of  prophet,  apostle  or 
the  Lord  Himself,  the  historical  situation  may  need  to  be 
briefly  sketched.  If  the  text  be  a  quotation  in  the  New 
Testament  from  the  Old  Testament,  the  context  in  each 
case  should  be  compared,  and  the  contrast  of  meaning  in 
each  place  indicated.  The  resemblance  between  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  speaker  or  the  writer,  whose  words  form 
the  text,  and  of  the  hearers  of  the  sermon,  if  that  be  the 
reason  for  the  choice  of  the  text,  should  be  made  plain. 
A  contrast  may  be  effectively  used  to  emphasise  the  adapt- 
ability of  the  revelation  of  God  to  the  variety  of  human 
need.  If  a  text  mark  a  distinct  stage  in  the  development 
of  the  divine  revelation,  its  significance  and  value  in  that 
respect  should  be  shown  by  reference  to  the  thought  it 
supersedes  or  corrects.  The  introduction  in  all  these 
instances  should  seek  to  connect  the  immediate  interest  of 
the  text  with  the  more  general  interest  which  the  Bible 
has,  or  should  have,  for  Christian  people  as  the  literature 
of  the  divine  revelation.  A  few  sentences  in  an  introduc- 
tion may  demand  on  the  part  of  the  preacher  a  wide  and 
true  scholarship,  and  may  either  expose  his  ignorance  or 
prove  his  competence.  The  use  of  the  imagination  to 
produce  a  vivid  picture  of  the  past  must  be  restrained 
by  accurate   knowledge,  and   should  not  be  indulged   for 

^  He  may  serve  the  Lord  (rep  Kvpiifi)  as  well  as  the  opportunity  {xaipit), 
Ro  12^^ ;  these  are  variant  readings. 


THE   ARRANGEMENT   OF   THE   SERMON  429 

aesthetic  effect  merely,  but  only  to  secure  attention  to  the 
subject. 

6.  The  introduction  should  lead  to  the  statement  of 
the  subject.  It  is  in  the  interests  of  the  preacher  that  he 
should  himself  know  distinctly  so  that  he  can  state  in 
definite  terms  what  his  subject  is.  A  preacher  may  take 
a  text,  and  say  a  great  deal  about  the  words,  phrases,  and 
clauses  of  the  text  without  fixing  his  own  mind  or 
the  mind  of  his  hearers  on  any  one  subject.  There  are 
sermons  which  are  like  a  ruderless  ship  on  a  wide  sea, 
driven  hither  and  thither,  and  making  for  no  haven  If 
the  preacher  states  a  subject,  he  puts  himself  under  a 
pledge  to  his  hearers  to  steer  a  straight  course  for  some 
harbour.^ 

(1)  How  should  the  subject  be  stated,  as  a  theme  or  as 
a  thesis,  in  a  phrase  or  in  a  sentence  ?  Should  a  preacher 
on  Jn  12^2  intimate  that  he  is  going  to  treat  of  the  Attrac- 
tion of  Christ,  or  that  he  is  going  to  prove  that  the  Attraction 
of  Christ  is  universal  ?  In  result  there  need  not  be  any 
difference ;  but  in  method  there  may  be.  A  discussion  of 
a  theme  will  not  assume  quite  the  same  form  as  a  demon- 
stration of  a  thesis,  but  it  leaves  wider  scope.  The  one 
will  be  expository,  the  other  argumentative.  Some  subjects 
will  lend  themselves  more  readily  to  one  form  than  another  ; 
some  may  be  equally  fitted  for  either  treatment.  What 
alone  must  be  insisted  on  is  that  whatever  form  may  be 
adopted  should  be  consistently  maintained.  A  sermon 
should  not  be  made  up  of  themes  discussed  and  theses 
demonstrated.^ 

(2)  If  the  preacher  limits  himself  strictly  to  one  thesis 
about  his  subject,  he  will  initially  exclude  all  other  aspects 
of  his  subject.  The  one  predicate  bars  out  all  other 
possible  predicates ;  he  will,  if  he  states  as  his  subject  that 
the  attraction  of  Christ  is  universal,  shut  himself  off  from 
discussing  such  a  thesis  as  that  it  is  personal,  it  is  sacrificial, 
it  is  certain,  unless  he  can  bring  in  these  propositions  as 
reasons  for  this  thesis.     The  same  limitation,  however,  he 

»  Vinet,  pp.  367-875.  ^  Christlieb,  pp.  321-352. 


430  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

may  impose  upon  himself  by  putting  only  one  aspect  of  his 
subject  into  the  statement  of  it,  as  in  such  a  title  as  The 
Universal  Attraction  of  Christ,  which  is  implicitly  a  thesis, 
as  it  contains  subject  and  predicate. 

(3)  This  may  all  seem  a  mere  nicety  of  form,  but  it 
involves  an  important  question  of  substance.  Is  it  desir- 
able that  a  preacher  should  usually  limit  his  subject  by  a 
predicate,  discussing  only  one  aspect  of  it,  or  as  many 
aspects  as  the  text  suggests  ?  The  two  extreme  cases  may 
be  excluded.  A  subject  may  be  so  great,  a  text  so  full, 
that  it  may  be  quite  impossible  to  treat  it  adequately  in 
the  limits  of  a  sermon  in  all  its  aspects.  An  aspect  of 
even  a  great  subject  might  be  of  comparatively  so  sub- 
ordinate interest  that  it  would  be  difficult  to  sustain  the 
interest  if  it  were  made  the  sole  subject  of  a  sermon. 
Some  preachers  can  make  so  little  out  of  any  theme  they 
treat,  that  they  may  attempt  to  deal  with  all  the  aspects 
of  a  subject  without  running  any  risk  of  overburdening  the 
minds  of  their  hearers.  An  inexperienced  preacher  had 
better  leave  himself  plenty  of  room  to  move  about  in. 
There  are  preachers  of  so  wealthy  a  mind  that  they  can 
bring  abundance  where  another  would  find  only  penury. 
The  preacher  who  limits  himself  to  one  idea,  one  subject 
and  one  predicate,  must  be  pretty  sure  of  himself,  that  he 
can  say  enough  about  it  to  instruct  and  interest  adequately 
and  not  to  send  away  his  hearera  disappointed.  If  a 
preacher  feels  it  is  his  wiser  course  to  deal  with  all  the 
aspects  of  his  subject  which  the  text  presents,  he  is  yet 
under  obligation  to  relate  the  aspects  to  one  another  as  well 
as  to  the  subject,  so  that  his  sermon  will  have  an  organic 
unity  and  development,  and  not .  be  merely  a  succession 
of  separate  discussions  with  only  the  common  subject  as  a 
very  thin  thread  of  connection.  Let  us  take  an  instance, 
and  let  it  be  the  familiar  text  Jn  3^^.  If  the  love  of 
God  be  the  subject  of  the  sermon,  and  all  other  subjects 
suggested  by  the  verse  be  treated  as  aspects  of  it,  yet 
all  of  these  aspects  should  be  linked  together.  The  nature 
of  God's  love  is  shown  in  its  object,  the  world ;  the  need 


THE   ARRANGEMENT   OF   THE   SERMON  431 

of  the  world  fixes  the  measure  of  that  love  in  the  gift  of 
Christ ;  Christ  must  be  represented  as  in  His  person  and 
work  calling  forth  the  faith,  which  is  the  condition  of 
receiving  that  love ;  and  the  result  of  faith — the  eternal 
life  which  is  the  purpose  of  God's  love  in  giving  Christ — 
must  be  shown  to  be  congruous  both  with  its  human  con- 
dition and  divine  reason. 

(4)  There  are  in  the  Bible  itself  a  number  of  theses, 
which  can  at  once  be  made  the  subjects  of  sermons.  The 
Beatitudes^  are  a  series  of  theses  each  with  a  reason 
annexed ;  the  treatment  of  one  of  them  will  consist  of  a 
discussion  of  the  reason  in  order  to  show  how  it  justifies 
the  connection  of  subject  and  predicate,  the  inward 
condition  described  and  the  blessedness  promised.  Such 
statements  as  that  God  is  Spirit,^  or  God  is  Light,*  or 
God  is  Love,*  may  form  the  thesis  of  a  sermon ;  and  the 
treatment  of  the  thesis  will  consist  in  showing  what  the 
epithet  as  applied  to  God  means,  and  it  may  be  if  the 
preacher  is  greatly  daring,  in  proving  why  it  applies  to 
God,  and  in  the  strict  sense  to  God  alone.^  Whenever  a 
text  is  given  as  a  thesis,  or  readily  lends  itself  to  be  put 
in  the  form  of  a  thesis,  it  ought  to  be  treated  as  such. 
But  with  all  deference  to  the  judgment  of  so  great  a 
preacher  as  Dr.  Jowett  undoubtedly  is,  the  writer  cannot 
persuade  himself  that  necessity  is  laid  on  every  preacher 
to  force  his  subject  into  such  a  form,  or  only  to  take 
subjects  that  can  be  put  into  it.  The  statement  of  a 
thesis  to  be  demonstrated  rather  than  of  a  subject  to  be 
discussed  is  less  in  accord  with  general  pulpit  habit,  and 
does  not  so  easily  and  fitly  attach  itself  to  the  exposition 
of  a  text.  So  long  as  the  essential  condition  of  unity  is 
secured,  the  preacher  should  claim  and  use  the  largest 
liberty  in  the  form  in  which  he  conceives  his  purpose  for 
himself  or  states  it  to  his  hearers. 

1  Mt  58-".  9  Jn  4«*. 

8  I  Jn  IB.  4  48 

'  The  three  texts  might  also  be  combined  to  show  how  as  spirit  God 
must  be  both  light  and  love,  and  as  perfect  spirit  cannot  but  be  both. 


432  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

7.  After  the  statement  of  the  subject  there  naturally 
comes  the  indication,  more  or  less  formal,  of  the  divisions. 
How  are  these  divisions  to  be  got  ?  In  many  cases  the 
text,  when  studied  in  its  context,  will  suggest  the  divisions. 
In  other  cases  the  material  which  has  been  collected  for 
the  treatment  of  a  subject  will  fall  into  divisions.  Where 
a  thesis  is  to  be  proved,  the  reasons  suggested  by  the 
Scriptures,  the  study  of  theology  or  ethics,  etc.,  will  give 
the  divisions.  (1)  The  preacher  will  be  wise  not  to 
impose  his  divisions  from  without  on  his  subject,  but  to 
allow  them  to  develop  from  within  it.  Many  preachers 
exercise  their  ingenuity  to  discover  an  artificial  arrange- 
ment of  their  sermon,  when  the  text  itself,  studied  as  it 
must  always  be  in  its  context,  would  yield  them  the 
natural  development.  The  text  should  suggest  not  only 
the  subject,  but  its  treatment  also ;  and,  unless  the 
preacher  has  such  resources  in  himself  as  not  to  need  the 
aid,  he  had  better  choose  texts  which  yield  him  this 
guidance.  The  context  of  a  very  short  text,  which  may 
itself  suggest  only  the  subject,  may  present  a  historical 
situation,  which  by  the  argument  from  analogy  can  be 
made  to  yield  a  very  fruitful  treatment  of  the  subject. 
Thus  the  phrase  "  a  garland  for  ashes "  ^  may,  when  put 
in  its  historical  setting  of  the  summons  to  return  from 
exile  in  Babylon,  present  the  subject  of  God's  Providence 
as  changing  the  sorrow  for  sin  into  the  joy  of  God's 
forgiveness.  It  cannot  be  too  much  insisted  on  that  the 
Bible  proves  itself  inspired  by  its  inexhaustible  suggestive- 
ness  to  him  who  studies  it  constantly,  accurately  and 
minutely ;  and  it  should  be  used  as  much  as  possible  to 
suggest  not  only  the  contents,  but  even  the  form  of 
sermons,  for  it  must  be  remembered  that  contents  and 
form  are  not  external  to  one  another,  but  the  one  should 
determine  the  other. 

(2)  The  clauses  of  a  text  may  suggest  the  parts  of  the 
sermon  and  yet  the  preacher  may  lack  skill  in  finding  the 
proper  terms  for  his  divisions,  so  as  to  relate  them  to  the 

» Is  613. 


THE  ARRANGEMENT   OF   THE   SERMON  433 

subject  as  a  whole.  Can  the  general  categories  of  thought 
be  of  any  assistance  to  him  ?  It  is  generally  assumed  that 
they  cannot  and  will  not ;  but  this  seems  to  the  writer 
too  hasty  an  assumption.  If  they  are  useful  in  thinking 
generally,  why  should  they  not  be  useful  in  the  thought 
of  the  pulpit  ?  In  the  treatment  of  a  subject  under 
various  aspects,  we  are  using,  although  we  may  not  think 
of  it,  the  category  of  substance  and  attribute.  Is  there  no 
value  in  the  distinction  between  the  essential  and  the 
accidental  attributes  of  a  subject  ?  The  new  birth  is  an 
essential  attribute  of  the  Christian  life;  but  a  sudden 
conversion  is  only  accidental,  although  some  preachers 
confuse  the  one  with  the  other,  and  think  they  can  assert 
the  one  only  by  insisting  on  the  other.  A  preacher  may 
apply  to  his  text  the  question :  Is  this  epithet  of  the 
subject  here  a  necessary  or  an  accidental  attribute  ? 
Such  a  question  would  prevent  much  hasty  generalisation 
on  insufficient  data.  Again  a  great  deal  of  the  matter 
of  preaching  can  be  arranged  in  the  relation  of  genus  and 
species,  as,  for  instance,  love  with  charity  of  judgment, 
generosity  of  gift,  beneficence  in  service  as  subordinate 
forms  of  it.  A  general  moral  principle  may  include 
principles  of  lesser  generality ;  thus  justice  will  include 
honesty  in  dealing,  fidelity  to  promises,  veracity  in  speech. 
An  abstract  idea  may  be  illustrated  by  concrete  instances, 
Scriptural,  historical,  biographical,  literary.  A  personality 
may  be  sketched  as  regards  heredity,  environment, 
development,  capacity,  character,  career,  reputation.  An 
event  may  be  examined  as  regards  time,  place,  antecedents, 
consequents,  human  conduct  or  divine  providence.  A 
nation's  history  falls  into  periods  separated  by  crises. 
The  moral  quality  of  an  action  may  be  judged  as  regards 
motive,  method,  manner,  intention,  result ;  its  religious 
significance  may  be  determined  in  its  conditions  and 
issues  as  regards  the  relation  of  God  and  Man.  A  vice, 
virtue,  or  grace  may  be  analysed  psychologically  as  regards 
thought,  feeling,  will.  A  statement  may  be  broken  up 
into    its    parts,    e.g..    Evil     company    doth     corrupt    good 


434  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

manners.^  (1)  What  is  evil  company?  (2)  Wherein 
do  good  manners  consist  ?  (3)  How  does  the  first 
corrupt  the  second  ?  The  inquiry  might  be  extended 
thus.  (4)  Why  does  it  corrupt  ?  The  expansiveness 
and  pervasiveness  of  personal  influence  would  be  the 
answer.  (5)  How  is  this  corruption  to  be  prevented  ? 
A  subject  can  be  dealt  with  in  its  various  relations,  as 
love  in  relation  to  God,  self,  neighbour.  The  various 
reasons  for  a  thesis  may  be  stated  in  order,  as  for  the 
statement  that  Christ  is  divine:  (1)  His  sinless  and 
perfect  moral  character,  (2)  His  unique  and  absolute 
consciousness  of  divine  sonship,  (3)  The  constancy  and 
efficacy  of  His  mediatorial  function.  These  are  the  sorts 
of  questions  that  the  preacher  in  thinking  over  a  subject 
may,  as  it  were,  address  to  himself.  The  same  subject 
may  be  examined  in  different  ways  in  accordance  with 
the  purpose  for  which  it  is  being  dealt  with.  One  text 
might  serve  for  several  sermons.  It  is  not  suggested 
that  the  preacher  in  thinking  should  take  up  one  set  of 
categories  after  another,  and  try  to  apply  them  to  his 
subject.  Thinking  of  any  value  is  not  a  mechanical 
process  of  that  sort.  A  man's  genius  consists  in  his 
doing  spontaneously,  without  troubling  about  the  process, 
what  another  man  must  discipline  himself  to  do.  If  a 
preacher  finds  himself  lacking  in  fertility  and  facility  of 
thought,  he  may  develop  his  powers  by  deliberate  practice 
in  the  formal  application  of  the  categories  of  thought ;  and 
in  due  time  he  may  discover  himself  thinking  freely  and 
quickly. 

(3)  There  are  certain  logical  rules  that  the  thinker  if 
he  would  think  correctly  must  observe.  Vinet^  mentions 
four,  which  may  be  briefly  summarised,  (a)  The  species 
which  is  subordinate  to  the  genus  must  not  be  co-ordinated  with 
it.  Sympathy,  service,  sacrifice  are  all  forms  of  love,  its 
exercise,  and  should  not  be  placed  alongside  of  it. 

(b)  What  does  not  differ  should  not  be  distinguished. 
To   warn    against    an    action    because    it    is    contrary    to 

1  1  Co  15=«.  2  Op.  dt.,  pp.  333-336. 


THE   ARRANGEMENT   OF   THE   SERMON  435 

common  sense  and  to  self-interest  is  giving  motives  that 
overlap,  as  common  sense  takes  account  of  self-interest. 
To  say  that  a  course  of  action  will  promote  peace  and 
tranquillity  is  repetitious,  unless  peace  be  used  in  the 
restricted  sense  of  outward  condition  and  tranquillity  of 
inward,  and  such  a  restriction  is  not  usually  accepted. 

(c)  The  association  of  ideas  mtist  not  he  allowed  to  draw 
an  idea  from  one  part  of  the  discussion,  to  which  it  logically 
belongs,  to  another  part,  ivhere  it  is  only  a  repetition  of  what 
has  already  been  said,  or  an  anticipation  of  what  will  he  said. 
In  a  sermon  on  Christ's  divinity  His  filial  consciousness 
must  not  be  brought  in  as  one  aspect  of  His  moral 
character,  if  it  is  afterwards  to  be  dealt  with  as  an  inde- 
pendent reason  for  the  belief. 

{d)  An  idea  must  not  he  treated  before  its  proofs  the 
discussion  which  is  to  pn^epare  for  it  and  explain  it.  If,  for 
instance,  the  love  of  God  is  to  be  proved  by  the  grace  of 
Christ,  it  must  not  be  first  dealt  with  in  the  sermon.  An 
arrangement  of  a  sermon,  however  ingenious,  which  does 
not  conform  to  these  rules  of  logical  thinking,  will  confuse. 
The  structure  of  a  sermon  should  correspond  to  the 
development  of  the  thought  which  it  contains,  and  should 
not  be  imposed  upon  it  from  without.  Here  lies  the 
danger  for  a  preacher  who  borrows  an  outline  from  even 
the  best  preacher ;  the  progress  of  the  sermon  is  not  in 
accord  with  the  movement  of  his  own  mind. 

(4)  The  rules  for  the  general  arrangement  of  the 
sermon  apply  to  the  special  arrangement  of  each  part  of 
the  whole.  Vinet^  thinks  it  necessary  to  add  three 
counsels  regarding  the  treatment  of  the  parts,  (a)  In  the 
first  place,  he  urges  that  each  part  should  not  be  treated  as 
a  whole  in  itself  according  to  its  own  plan  regardless  of  the 
plan  of  the  whole,  but  only  in  relation  to  the  whole,  so  that 
there  should  be  a  continuous  movement.  Accordingly  he 
deprecates  the  writing  of  portions  of  the  sermon  beforehand, 
and  then  putting  them  into  the  sermon  ;  either  the  portions 
will  need  to  be  modified  so  as  to  fit  into  their  place,  or  the 

'  Ojj.  tU.,  336-340. 


436  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

progress  of  the  thought  will  he  interfered  with,  (b)  In  the 
second  place,  he  maintains  that,  while  in  the  parts  there 
must  necessarily  be  the  treatment  of  the  subject  in  the 
details,  and  not  in  generalities,  yet  the  unity  of  the  subject 
must  not  be  lost  in  details ;  the  details  must  not  be  an 
accumulation,  but  an  organic  development.  The  man  who 
in  preaching  can  indulge  only  in  generalities  shows  the 
poverty  of  his  own  mind  in  not  being  able  to  think  out  the 
details,  and  will  soon  exhaust  his  material,  and  begin  to 
repeat  himself,  (c)  The  second  rule,  according  to  Vinet, 
leads  to  a  third,  and  it  is  already  suggested  in  the  second. 
The  details  must  result  from  the  analysis  of  the  general 
statements  about  the  subject.  While  an  over-subtlety 
must  be  avoided  as  that  wearies  and  irritates,  so  long  as 
interest  can  be  maintained  the  analysis  must  be  made  as 
complete  as  possible. 

8.  So  far  we  have  been  dealing  with  the  disposition  of 
a  sermon  from  the  logical  standpoint,  the  appeal  to  the 
intellect,  but  the  sermon  is  intended  not  only  to  enlighten 
the  mind,  but  also  to  stir  the  heart  and  move  the  will ; 
and  the  preacher  must  through  his  whole  personality 
address  himself  to  the  whole  personality  of  his  hearers.^ 
The  oratorical  standpoint  is  complementary  to  the  logical  for 
the  preacher  who  desires  to  be  in  all  respects  effective. 
Between  the  two  arrangements  there  is  not,  and  cannot  be, 
any  contradiction,  as  there  is  no  schism  in  man's  nature. 
An  illogical  arrangement  cannot  be  oratorical,  and  the 
logical  arrangement  is  not  only  the  basis  of  the  oratorical, 
but  is  already  in  some  measure  oratorical,  as  it  appeals  to 
the  intelligence,  part  of  the  personality  oratory  seeks  to 
make  captive.  And  not  to  the  intelligence  alone,  for  the 
truth  which  is  being  thus  logically  presented  by  its  very 
nature  affects  the  heart  as  well.  There  is,  however,  a  logic  / 
of  the  soul  as  well  as  of  the  mind ;  and  the  preacher  must  ^ 
recognise  that  to  secure  the  full  effect  of  his  appeal.     This 

^  Cf.  Vinet,  pp.  340-352.  There  must  be,  as  a  well-known  preacher 
said  to  the  writer,  "  a  release  of  the  personality  "  ;  while  exercising  due  self- 
restraint,  the  preacher  must  sometiTnes  let  himself  go. 


THE  ARRANGEMENT   OF   THE   SERMON  437 

logic  of  the  soul  may  be  summed  up  in  Cicero's  saying, 
Eloquentia  nihil  est  nisi  motus  animce  continuus}  Movement 
towards  a  definite  goal  is  what  the  soul  demands,  from 
indiiSerence  to  interest,  from  indecision  to  decision,  from 
separation  or  even  opposition  to  the  truth  to  an  ever  closer 
self-identification  with  it. 

(1)  This  movement  must  be  continuous.  A  speaker 
might  by  violence  of  thought,  voice  or  gesture  give  his 
hearers  a  momentary  shock,  or  even  a  succession  of  such 
shocks ;  but  this  is  not  eloquence ;  for  eloquence  aims  at 
gradual  and  yet  permanent  effect.  The  orator  is  seeking  to 
capture  for  the  truth  the  whole  personality  of  those  whom 
he  addresses.  The  means  must  be  consistent  with  the  end. 
To  ensnare  the  unwary  hearer  by  pandering  to  prejudice,  or 
by  provoking  passion,  or  even  by  stirring  the  emotions 
without  any  enlightenment  of  the  intellect,  is  unworthy  of 
the  object  which  the  preacher  sets  before  himself.  Light 
and  heat  must  go  together  where  eloquence  is  concerned 
with  the  truth.  As  he  does  not  seek  to  catch  unawares, 
or  by  surprise,  but  to  win  his  hearer  surely  because  slowly 
in  accordance  with  the  movement  of  thought  and  feeling, 
he  must  not  let  go  as  he  tightens  his  grip.  All  irrele- 
vancies,  digressions,  repetitions,  returns  on  his  own  path, 
turning  aside  even  for  a  moment  from  the  way  that  leads 
straight  to  his  destination,  must  be  avoided.  He  must  not 
himself  obliterate  the  impression  he  has  made  by  competing 
or  even  conflicting  considerations  or  motives.  The  divisions 
of  the  sermon  must  not  be  so  announced,  or  treated  as  to 
break  up  the  one  continuous  movement  into  a  succession  of 
lesser  movements.  There  must  not  be  a  peroration  at  the 
end  of  one  division,  and  an  introduction  to  the  next,  like 
the  flood  and  the  ebb  of  the  tide.  This  is  not,  however,  an 
argument  against  divisions,  or  even  the  announcement 
which  makes  the  hearers  aware  of  them,  although  the 
preacher  with  the  orator's  instincts  will  know  if  a  firstly  or 
secondly  would  or  would  not  be  like  a  stone  of  stumbling  in 
his  path,  and  will  or  will  not  indicate  his  heads  accordingly. 
*  Quoted  by  Vinet,  p.  342. 


438  THE   CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

But  it  is  an  argument  against  any  artificial  division  that 
hinders  and  does  not  help  the  advance  of  thought,  or  any 
excessive  division  or  subdivision,  which  unseasonably  in- 
terrupts the  movement. 

(2)  This  movement  is  not  only  continuous,  but  also 
progressive ;  it  is  towards  a  goal.  It  is  not  a  Bergsonian 
dan  vital  without  a  teleology.  The  preacher  has  not  only  an 
impulse  to  speak,  but  also  a  purpose  in  speaking.  Here 
dramatic  art  is  significant  for  the  orator.  Modern  psycho- 
logy places  conation  above  cognition ;  life  is  the  end  of 
thought ;  volition  completes  intellection,  (a)  Accordingly 
progress  in  the  sermon  involves  movement  from  doctrine  to 
practice,  from  idea  to  action.  When  the  nature  of  a  duty 
has  been  explained,  the  motives  for  doing  it  must  be  urged. 
(b)  Even  where  considerations  are  presented  to  the  mind 
alone,  progress  depends  on  movement  from  the  abstract  to 
the  concrete,  from  the  general  principle  to  the  individual 
instance,  as  the  latter  stirs  the  sentiments,  which  move  the 
will  more  readily  and  deeply  than  the  former,  (c)  Where 
reasons  and  motives  are  being  presented,  progress  is  secured 
by  passing  from  the  weaker  to  the  stronger.  But  it  may 
be  objected :  Are  not  these  only  relative  terms,  as  regards 
motives,  even  more  than  as  regards  reasons,  for  we  can 
assume  a  common  reason  with  better  right  than  rely  on  a 
common  conscience  ?  As  a  rule,  however,  the  simpler  the 
reason,  that  is,  the  more  self-evident,  the  stronger  it  is.  As 
regards  motives,  while  there  may  be  hearers,  in  whom  self- 
interest  is  stronger  than  regard  for  man  or  reverence  for 
God,  yet  the  preacher  should  advance  from  the  lower  to 
the  higher,  e.g.,  from  the  fear  to  the  love  of  God,  from  God's 
law  to  His  grace.  It  may  be  asked,  however,  why  should 
there  be  this  advance  at  all,  why  not  present  the  highest 
reason  or  motive  at  once  ?  In  answer  several  considera- 
tions may  be  offered.  A  preacher  while  aiming  at  practical 
result,  desires  also,  and  rightly,  to  present  his  subject  as 
completely  as  he  can,  to  place  the  motives  in  their  proper 
relation  to  one  another.  Again  the  moral  and  religious 
condition    of    any    congregation    is    so    varied,  that    what 


THE  ARRANGEMENT   OF  THE   SERMON         439 

reaches  one  mind  or  heart  may  not  reach  another,  and  the 
preacher  wishes  to  reach  all,  and  each  in  the  most  effective 
method.  Further,  while  a  man  giving  account  to  himself 
of  his  reason  or  motive  of  action  will  probably  think  only 
of  one,  yet  the  process  of  decision  is  far  more  complex. 
He  has  been  affected  by  other  reasons  and  motives,  and  if 
he  had  not  been  so  affected,  what  he  reckons  as  the  all- 
decisive  reason  or  motive  would  not  have  had  its  full  effect. 
The  argument  or  the  appeal  must  be  a  cumulative  one. 
While  the  preacher  cannot  be  restricted  to  the  highest 
reason  or  motive  only,  but  must  lead  up  to  it  from  lower 
levels  of  thought  or  feeling,  he  does  not  strengthen  but 
weakens  his  argument  or  appeal  by  a  multitude  of  weak 
considerations,  as  quantity  cannot  make  up  for  quality. 
There  must  be  selection  of  only  what  is  worthy  of  the 
occasion  and  purpose,  although  there  may  be  degrees  of  value 
in  what  is  so  selected.  The  more  deeply  moving  an  appeal 
is  the  more  carefully  should  it  be  prepared  for,  as  the 
preacher  does  not  want  to  catch  his  hearer  unawares,  or  to 
rush  him  into  a  hasty  decision  ;  the  issue,  moral  or  religious, 
is  too  serious  for  stratagem  of  any  kind,  (d)  To  the  question 
whether  doubts  and  difficulties  should  be  met  before  the 
arguments  are  set  forth,  or  after  them,  no  one  answer  can 
be  given.  There  are  misconceptions  or  misrepresentations 
which  can  at  the  beginning  be  brushed  aside  in  order  to 
clear  the  ground  for  the  proof  proper.  Objections  may  be 
so  serious  that  it  would  be  a  mistake  to  present  them 
before  the  evidence  has  made  its  due  impression.  If,  how- 
ever, they  are  dealt  with  after  the  proof,  they  must  be  so 
handled  that  their  refutation  will  be  a  confirmation  of  the 
argument,  and  so  the  last  impression  on  the  mind  will  be 
not  a  challenge  by  error  but  a  conquest  by  truth.  The 
sermon  should  thus  move  forward,  not  always  at  the  same 
pace,  for  that  would  cause  strain  and  bring  weariness,  but 
more  swiftly  towards  the  close  ;  the  conclusion  should  have 
the  momentum  of  the  whole  pievious  movement. 

(3)  That    the  continuous    and    progressive  movement 
may  be  maintained,  the  utmost  importance  attaches  to  the 


440  THE   CHKISTIAN   PREACHER 

transitions}  The  parts  of  a  sermon  should  not  be  placed 
in  juxtaposition,  with  the  separation  offensively  visible. 
What  logic  would  not  condemn,  rhetoric  disapproves.  It 
is  not  the  statement  that  a  new  division  is  being  begun 
that  is  the  offence ;  but  the  ending  of  one  division  and  the 
beginning  of  another  without  any  dove-tailing.  A  par- 
ticular instance  will  be  more  convincing  than  a  general 
statement.  In  dealing  with  the  divinity  of  Christ  the 
transition  from  the  first  proof,  the  sinless  and  perfect 
moral  character,  to  the  second,  the  absolute  and  unique 
religious  consciousness,  might  be  made  as  follows :  How 
can  this  character  be  explained  ?  Not  by  heredity, 
environment,  genius  (each  of  these  parts  might  be  briefly 
treated).  The  explanation  lies  where  Jesus  Himself  put 
it,  in  His  relation  as  Son  to  God  as  His  Father.  Accord- 
ingly we  pass  (or  thus  we  are  led)  to  the  second  proof. 
Once  more  the  transition  to  the  third  proof  from  the 
second  might  be  made  as  follows :  Both  as  regards  moral 
character  and  religious  consciousness  Jesus  stands  alone, 
above  all  men ;  and  yet  He  does  not  will  to  remain  alone, 
but  to  gather  around  Him  those  in  whom  He  reproduces 
His  goodness  and  His  fellowship  as  Son  with  God  as 
Father.  He  brings  God  to  men  in  grace,  and  men  to 
God  in  faith.  The  third  proof  of  His  divinity,  therefore, 
is  the  constancy  and  efficacy  of  His  mediatorial  function, 
for  the  Sinless  Son  of  Man  and  the  only-begotten  Son  of 
God  is  the  Saviour  and  Lord  of  men,  the  firstborn  among 
many  brethren.  If  care  were  taken  about  the  transitions, 
the  common  objection  to  divisions  in  a  sermon  as  breaking 
it  up  into  fragments  would  be  deprived  of  any  good  reason. 
9.  The  last  part  of  the  sermon  is  the  conclusion,  or, 
if  the  sermon  has  any  claims  to  eloquence,  the  peroration.^ 
(1)  Not  every  sermon,  it  must  be  insisted,  needs,  or  lends 
itself  to  such  an  addition.  If  there  has  been  the  pro- 
gressive continuous   movement  in  the  sermon   which   has 

1  Cf.  Vinet,  pp.  376-380. 

2  See  Vinet,  pp.  381-393 ;  Christlieb,  pp.  363-366  ;  Hoyt,  The  Work  of 
Preaching,  pp.  195-207. 


THE   ARRANGEMENT  OF   THE   SERMON  441 

been  described  as  its  ideal,  although  the  reality  often 
falls  short  of  it,  and  the  cumulative  effect  of  the  whole  has 
reached  its  limit  at  the  close  of  the  last  division,  nothing 
more  is  needed,  or  should  be  attempted.  Many  a  con- 
clusion is  a  fresh  start  from  lower  ground ;  and  many  a 
peroration  changes  the  upward  to  a  downward  flight. 
Often  the  preacher  fails  to  stop  when  he  has  done  his  best. 

(2)  If,  however,  the  truth  explained  or  the  duty 
enforced  has  not  been  brought  quite  home  to  the  reason 
or  the  conscience  of  the  hearers,  an  application  at  the  end 
may  be  both  necessary  and  legitimate.  This  does  not, 
however,  justify  the  assumption  often  made  that  every 
sermon  should  end  with  an  appeal  first  to  the  saints  or 
saved,  and  then  to  the  sinners  or  unsaved.  Such  an 
arbitrary  addition  is  not  only  illogical  and  inartistic,  but 
it  savours  even  of  insincerity.  If  the  sermon  has  not 
shown  reasons  or  motives  for  the  continuance  or  the 
commencement  of  the  life  in  God,  such  an  application 
would  be  a  lifeless  formality.  It  may  be  objected  that  a 
sermon  should  be  practical  throughout,  that  the  truth 
should  be  so  presented  as  to  be  applied  from  the  beginning 
to  the  end.  And  yet,  even  if  this  be  the  case,  a  more 
direct  application  may  be  necessary.  There  may  be 
different  classes  of  hearers,  the  old,  the  middle-aged,  or 
the  young,  the  anxious,  the  sorrowing,  or  the  bereaved, 
the  "  strong  "  or  the  "  weak  "  in  faith,  the  defeated  or  the 
victorious  in  life,  and  to  each  may  be  made  the  appropriate 
application. 

(3)  Again  the  conclusion  may  focus  the  argument 
or  appeal  of  the  sermon.  It  may  weave  into  a  few 
sentences  the  explanations,  reasons,  motives  of  the  sermon. 
Having  stated  the  teaching  of  the  sermon,  it  may  summon 
to  belief,  trust  in,  and  surrender  to  the  truth  that  has 
been  taught.  Its  aim  may  be  to  produce  a  devout  mood, 
and  not  only  the  acceptance  of  a  doctrine,  or  the  practice 
of  a  duty.  If  the  unity  of  impression  desired  has  not 
been  attained,  the  conclusion  must  secure  this  result. 

(4)  As    the    introduction    aims    at    introducing    the 


442  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

sermon  by  bringing  the  preacher  into  contact  with  his 
hearers,  so  that  he  may  not  begin  abruptly,  the  conckision 
seeks  to  leave  the  heai-ers  in  contact  with  the  preacher, 
BO  that  he  may  not  end  abruptly,  but  that  the  truth  he  has 
taught  may  go  with  them  to  their  homes  because  of  its 
lodgment  in  their  hearts. 

(5)  The  preacher  will  desire  to  leave  his  hearers  on 
the  loftiest  height  of  faith,  reverence,  aspiration  and 
purpose  to  which  he  is  capable  of  raising  them.  The 
argument  should  be  most  convincing,  the  appeal  most 
persuasive  at  the  close.  Imagination  will  be  most  vivid, 
feeling  most  intense,  language  most  elevated  and  passionate 
in  the  peroration.  It  is  true  that  the  orator  may  fitly 
desire  to  leave  his  hearers  not  so  much  in  the  temporary 
emotion  he  has  produced,  as  in  the  permanent  mood,  which 
will  perpetuate  it,  and  so  cany  the  impressions  and 
influences  of  the  sanctuary  out  into  the  world.  He  may 
end  in  a  tranquil  minor  chord  after  the  triumphant  major. 
Browning's  poem  Saul  may  be  studied  for  such  an  effect. 
This  is  not  anti-climax,  but  rather  a  resting  on  the  height 
which  has  been  scaled. 

(6)  It  is  proper  and  desirable  that  the  sermon  should, 
as  an  act  of  worship,  end  with  the  laying  of  the  sacrifice 
on  God's  altar  in  an  ascription  of  praise  in  the  fitting 
language  of  Scripture,  or  an  aspiration  that  God  may  by 
His  grace  enable  hearers  and  preacher  alike  to  live  as  they 
have  learned,  or  in  an  intercession  that  eveiywhere  the 
"Word  preached  may  have  free  course,  and  so  by  it  God 
may  be  glorified.  If  a  sermon  cannot  spontaneously  pass 
into  praise  or  prayer,  it  has  not  been  what  it  should  have 
been.  To  end  badly  is  to  undo  much  that  may  have  been 
done  well ;  to  feel  unable  to  end  well  shows  that  what  has 
been  done  has  been  badly  done. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  COMPOSITION   OF  THE  SERMON. 

1.  The  third  part  of  Ehetoric  deals  with  elocution,  includ- 
ing both  the  writing  of  the  sermon,  if  it  is  written,  and 
the  speaking  of  it.  The  delivery  of  a  sermon  may  assume 
several  forms.  It  may  be  read  from  a  manuscript ;  it  may 
be  fully  written  out,  and  then  committed  verbatim  to 
memory ;  it  may  be  written  out  fully,  and  then  without 
any  attempt  at  memorising  be  freely  reproduced ;  it  may 
be  expounded  in  free  speech  in  the  pulpit  from  an  outline 
or  notes  which  the  preacher  has  before  him ;  in  whatever 
way  it  may  be  prepared  beforehand,  it  may  be  spoken 
without  any  aid  to  the  memory  in  outline  or  notes  before 
the  preacher.  The  defects  or  merits  of  these  different 
ways  will  be  discussed  in  the  next  chapter.  Meanwhile 
we  are  concerned  with  the  sermon  as  a  literary  composi- 
tion. For  it  may  be  urged  that  even  the  preacher  who 
does  not  write  fully  (or  at  all)  should  write  a  good  deal 
in  other  ways,  and  discipline  his  mind  by  writing.  The 
speaker  who  does  not  also  write  is  in  danger  of  getting 
very  slipshod  in  his  style,  very  limited  in  his  vocabulary, 
very  stereotyped  in  his  phrases,  and  often  very  superficial 
in  his  thought.  Writing  gives  time  for  subsidiary  think- 
ing around  the  primary  thought,  accuracy  in  expression, 
variety  in  language.  It  is  an  almost  indispensable  disci- 
pline for  the  speaker,  the  more  necessary  the  more  fluent 
he  is,  as  there  is  "  a  fatal  facility  "  which  is  by  no  means 
identical  with  "  a  certain  felicity  "  in  speech. 

2.  The  complaint  is  sometimes  made  that  so  few 
sermons  are  literature.  Now  that  may  be  a  reproach,  or 
it  may  be    a    commendation.     Sermons   ought  not  to  be 


444  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

literature  in  the  sense  that  the  expression  is  as  much  as, 
or  even  more  the  concern  of  the  preacher  than  the  content ; 
or  that  his  main  purpose  is  to  gratify  aesthetic  taste  by 
the  beauty  of  his  language,  or  the  felicity  of  his  illustra- 
tions, or  the  balance  of  his  periods.  He  is  engaged  in  too 
serious  a  business  for  such  trifling.  He  wants  to  enlighten 
the  reason,  quicken  the  conscience,  constrain  the  affections, 
and  move  the  will  for  God  and  goodness  as  directly, 
variedly,  potently,  and  effectively  as  he  can  ;  and  he  must 
not  allow  even  his  own  literary  feeling  to  hamper  or 
hinder  his  carrying  out  that  object.  If  a  preacher  is  admired 
for  his  abilities  instead  of  being  respected  and  obeyed  for 
the  truth  he  declares,  he  has  fallen  short  of  his  holy 
calling.  If  anything  in  the  form  so  absorbs  interest  as 
to  distract  attention  from  the  substance  of  the  sermon,  it 
has  missed  its  aim.  A  man  who  is  so  mastered  by  his 
message  that  he  can  think  of  nothing  but  how  he  may 
most  simply  and  forcefully  convey  it  to  his  hearers,  and 
who  speaks  out  of  the  fulness  of  his  mind  and  heart,  is  a 
better  and  a  worthier  preacher  than  the  man  who,  having 
literary  tastes,  desires  his  sermon  to  be  literary  in  quality, 
and  labours  most  for  that  end.  While  the  second  may 
win  man's  applause,  the  first  has  Christ's  approval. 

3.  But  beauty  is  not  the  enemy,  but  the  ally  of  truth. 
How  beautiful  in  form  as  well  as  true  in  substance  was 
the  teaching  of  Jesus !  Seriousness  and  earnestness  need 
not  be  shown  in  ugliness.  As  Euskin  has  taught  us,  the 
organ  in  the  measure  of  its  proper  fulfilment  of  function 
is  beautiful !  ^     The  most  appropriate  and  effective  language 

^  See  Modern  Paimters,  Part  ill.  section  1 :  chap.  xiii.  1  :  "Taking  it  for 
granted  that  every  creature  of  God  is  in  some  way  good,  and  has  a  duty 
and  specific  operation  providentially  accessary  to  the  well-being  of  all,  we 
are  to  look,  in  this  faith,  to  that  employment  and  nature  of  each,  and  to 
derive  pleasure  from  their  entire  perfection  and  fitness  for  the  duty  they 
have  to  do,  and  in  their  entire  fulfilment  of  it ;  and  so  we  are  to  take 
pleasure  and  find  beauty  in  the  magnificent  binding  together  of  the  jaws  of 
the  ichthyosaurus  for  catching  and  holding,  and  in  the  adaptation  of  the  lion 
for  springing,  and  of  the  locust  for  destroying,  and  of  the  lark  for  singing, 
and  in  every  creature  for  the  doing  of  that  which  God  has  made  it  to  do." 
An  evangelist  whose  noisy  methods  were  displeasing  to  a  clergyman  was 


THE  COMPOSITION  OF  THE  SERMON  445 

for  the  purpose  of  the  sermon  will  be  language  which 
will  give  it  the  title  to  be  called  literature :  for  let  us 
remember  that  the  themes  of  the  pulpit  are  of  such 
quality,  that  the  fitting  expression  of  them  may  claim  to 
be  literary,  not  in  the  fashion  of  the  hour  it  may  be,  but 
in  the  enduring  appreciation  of  men  who  can  judge  of  the 
true  values  in  the  things  of  the  soul.  The  preacher  then 
must  not  apply  any  external  standard  to  his  sermon ;  but 
he  must,  clearly  grasping  the  end  before  him,  seek  also  the 
most  fitting  means  to  reach  it.  An  effective  sermon  will 
attract,  and  not  repel ;  it  will  interest,  and  not  distract ; 
it  will  address  itself  no  less  to  the  imagination  than  the 
intellect ;  it  will  avoid  abstract  conceptions,  and  present 
concrete  images ;  it  will  not  utter  the  jargon  of  scientific, 
philosophical,  theological  schools,  but  the  common  speech 
of  the  human  heart,  not  in  its  commonplace,  but  in  its 
exalted  moods.  Elevated  meditation,  intense  unction, 
noble  aspiration  seek  and  find  beautiful  expression,  unless 
the  speaker's  defective  development  offers  an  insuperable 
obstacle  to  his  full  and  free  self-expression.  Sermons  may 
be  literature. 

4.  It  must  not  be  forgotten,  however,  that  sermons 
are  a  particular  kind  of  literature.  They  must  not  be 
written  as  essays  to  be  read  at  any  time,  but  as  speeches 
to  be  delivered  on  a  particular  occasion.  A  legitimate 
objection  of  many  hearers  to  the  read  sermon  is  due  to 
the  fact  that  it  was  written  to  be  read,  and  so  has  not  the 
qualities  of  spoken  utterance.  To  be  understood  and 
appreciated  it  would  need  to  be  read,  and  not  heard  by 
the  congregation.  Its  niceties  of  expression,  its  balance 
of  sentences,  its  subtle  allusions  cannot  be  seized  by  the 
hearer ;  and  he  feels  as  he  listens  that  not  only  can  not  he 
see  the  wood  for  the  trees,  but  that  the  trees  even  catch 
his  eye  only  for  a  moment  and  are  not  seen  long  enough 

reminded  that  the  temple  of  Solomon  was  built  without  the  sound  of  any 
hammer  (1  K  6'');  but  promiitly  replied:  "We're  not  building,  but 
blasting."  Whether  results  justified  the  methods  or  not  it  is  unnecessary 
to  inquire,  but  the  retort  was  an  application  of  the  principle  that  the  organ 
must  be  judged  as  it  does  or  does  not  fulfil  its  function. 


446  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

to  be  fully  seen.  Phrases  distract  the  attention  from 
sentences,  and  sentences  from  paragraphs ;  the  parte  take 
away  from  the  whole.  Even  if  a  sermon  is  written  to  be 
read  by  the  preacher,  it  must  be  eo  written  as  to  give  the 
hearers  the  impression  and  so  produce  the  effect  of  free 
speech.  What  is  composed  in  the  quiet  leisure  of  the 
study  can  be  appreciated  only  in  quiet  .leisure.  The  mood 
of  the  study  and  the  mood  of  the  pulpit  are  not  the  same ; 
and  the  sermon  even  if  written  in  the  study  should  be 
written  as  if  spoken  in  the  pulpit.  The  writer  should 
have  before  him  not  a  solitary  reader  quietly  receiving 
his  message,  but  an  audience  which  must  at  once  grasp, 
if  it  is  not  altogether  to  lose  the  words  which  fall  from 
his  lips.  The  feeling  against  read  sermons  is  not  in  many 
cases  a  mere  prejudice,  but  a  proof  that  the  sermon  has 
lost  its  true  character  as  speech,  and  has  become  an  essay.^ 
5.  If  the  preacher  is  a  student  who  is  widely  read  in 
science,  philosophy,  history,  theology,  there  is  a  danger  as 
regards  his  language,  which  he  must  carefully  guard  against : 
he  must  not  take  the  technical  terms  of  any  of  these 
mental  disciplines  into  the  pulpit.  There  are  technical 
terms  which  have  passed  into  common  use;  and  so  may 
be  employed  in  the  pulpit.  But  all  terms  which  to  be 
generally  understood  would  need  to  be  defined,  must  be 
carefully  avoided.  The  preachers  of  old  revelled  in  the 
technical  terms  of  theology.  Language  of  Latin  or  Greek 
origin  alone  befitted  the  dignity  of  their  message.  To-day 
the  danger  comes  from  another  direction.  Philosophy 
and  psychology  so  cast  their  spell  over  some  preachers 
(especially  young  men)  that  they  cannot  talk  in  any  other 
language.  A  man  may  repeat  these  terms  without 
thoroughly  understanding  their  meaning ;  let  him, 
however,  try  to  translate  them  into  the  language  under- 
stood by  the  people,  and  he  will  probably  discover  that 
he  himself  does  not  completely  understand  them.  If  the 
phrase  may  be   forgiven,  the    preacher  should  not  "  talk 

*  How  to  avoid  this  peril  Dr.  Jowett  indicates  in  a  passage  in  his  book, 
The  Preacher,  pp.  137-139. 


THE   COMPOSITION   OF   THE   SEKMON  447 

shop "  in  the  pulpit ;  his  sermon  should  present  "  the 
finished  article "  and  not  "  the  tools  employed  in  the 
makiug  of  it."  The  great  Hebrew  scholar  Dr.  Davidson 
maintained  that  "  the  language  which  '  wives  and  wabsters ' 
speak  is  capable  of  expressing  everything  which  any 
-reasonable  man  can  desire  to  say  to  his  fellows."  ^  Let 
the  thought  be  profound  enough  for  the  most  thoughtful, 
the  language  must  be  simple  enough  for  the  least  cultured 
and  intelligent.^ 

6,  The  opposite  danger  must,  however,  be  avoided. 
"  The  man-in-the-street "  with  his  limited  vocabulary,  with 
his  commonplace  phrases,  and  his  vulgar  slang  is  not  the 
model  of  language  for  the  preacher.  A  speaker  does  not 
really  capture  the  interest  of  his  hearers  by  "  talking 
down  "  to  them  ;  they  rather  even  resent  his  condescension  ; 
and  the  least  educated  prefer  an  educated  man  to  speak  to 
them  as  he  would  speak  to  men  of  the  same  culture.  It 
is  possible  to  be  homely  without  being  vulgar,  and 
simplicity  need  not  be  commonness.  Here  Jesus  again 
is  our  model ;  He  spoke  so  that  the  common  people  heard 
him  gladly,^  and  while  His  thought  was  too  deep  for  them, 
His  words  were  not  beyond  their  understanding.  There 
is  a  type  of  language  which  is  rather  more  ambitious  than 
that  of  the  man-of-the-street,  which  is,  however,  not  the 
speech  of  educated  men  ;  it  is  practised  by  a  good  many 
journalists,  some  of  whom  are  often  required  to  do  work 
for    which    they  have    inadequate    educational    resources.* 

^  See  Rheim,  Messianic  Prophecy  XV III. 

^  See  Hoy  t,  Vital  Elements  of  Preaching,  pp.  223-240. 

8  Mk  12". 

*  From  this  Journalese  Quiller-Oouch  distinguishes  what  he  calls  Jargon. 
•'You  must  not  confuse  this  Jargon,"  he  says,  "with  what  is  called  Journalese. 
The  two  overlap,  indeed,  and  have  a  knack  of  assimilating  each  other's  vices. 
But  Jargon  finds,  maybe,  the  most  of  its  votaries  among  g^jo.i  douce  people 
who  have  never  written  to  or  for  a  newspaper  in  their  life,  who  would  never 
talk  of  '  adverse  climatic  conditions '  when  they  mean  '  bad  weather ' ;  who 
have  never  trifled  with  verbs  such  as  'obsess,'  'recrudesce,'  'envisage,' 
'adumbrate,'  or  with  phrases  such  as  the  'psychological  moment,'  'the 
true  inwardness,'  'it  gives  furiously  to  think.'  It  dallies  with  Latinlty, 
'  sub  silentio,'  '  de  die  in  dem,'  '  Cui  bono '  (always  in  the  sense,  unsuspected 
of  Cicero,  of  '  What  is  the  profit  ? ')  but  not  for  the  sake  of  style.     Your 


448  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

The  preacher  who  uses  this  language  will  not  worthily 
fulfil  his  calling,  for  the  language  of  the  half-educated  is 
very  much  more  objectionable  than  the  language  of  those 
who  lay  no  claim  to  education.  The  problem  which  the 
preacher  has  to  solve  is  this :  he  must  so  speak  that  he 
can  be  understood  by  all  and  yet  he  must  not  speak  as 
many  of  his  hearers  are  in  the  habit  in  their  daily  life  of 
speaking ;  and  his  speech  must  not  offend  the  taste  of  any 
hearers  who  know  good  literature. 

7.  Some  noted  preachers  have  practised  and  commended 
as  a  means  of  forming  a  good  style  the  imitation  of  some 
of  the  great  writers  of  literature.  One  eminent  theological 
writer  has  confessed  that  he  deliberately  formed  his  style 
after  George  Eliot ;  a  famed  preacher  is  reported  to  have 

journalist  at  his  worst  is  an  artist  in  his  way  ;  he  daubs  paint  of  this  kind 
upon  a  lily  with  a  professional  zeal ;  the  more  flagrant  (or,  to  use  his  own 
word,  arresting)  the  pigment,  the  happier  is  his  soul.  Like  the  Babu,  he  is 
trying  all  the  while  to  embellish  our  poor  language,  to  make  it  more 
floriferous,  more  poetical — like  the  Babu,  for  example,  who,  reporting  his 
mother's  death,  wrote,  '  Regret  to  inform  you,  the  hand  that  rocked  the 
cradle  has  kicked  the  bucket. '  There  is  metaphor !  there  is  ornament ; 
there  is  a  sense  of  poetry,  though  as  yet  groping  in  a  world  unrealized. 
No  such  gusto  marks — no  such  zeal,  artistic  or  professional,  animates — 
the  practitioners  of  Jargon,  who  are,  most  of  them  (I  repeat),  douce, 
respectable  persons.  Caution  is  its  father  ;  the  instinct  to  save  everything, 
and  especially  trouble,  its  mother.  Indolence.  It  looks  precise,  but  it  is  not. 
It  is,  in  these  times,  safe  ;  a  thousand  men  have  said  it  before  and  not  one 
to  your  knowledge  had  been  prosecuted  for  it.  And  so,  like  respectability 
in  Chicago,  Jargon  stalks  unchecked  in  our  midst.  It  is  becoming  the 
language  of  Parliament ;  it  has  become  the  medium  through  which  Boards 
of  Government,  County  Councils,  Syndicates,  Committees,  Commercial 
Firms,  express  the  processes  as  well  as  the  conclusions  of  their  thought  and 
so  voice  the  reason  of  their  being"  (pp.  84-85).  "Have  you  begun  to 
detect  the  two  main  vices  of  jargon  ?  The  first  is  that  it  uses  circumlocu- 
tion rather  than  short  straight  speech.  .  .  .  The  second  vice  is  that  it 
habitually  chooses  vague,  woolly,  abstract  nouns  rather  than  concrete 
ones."  Some  rules  are  then  given  :  "  (1)  The  words,  cane,  instance,  character, 
nature,  condition,  persuasion,  degree,  are  to  be  avoided  (p.  87).  (2)  Even 
abstract  terms  are  to  be  suspected  (p.  90).  (3)  The  trick  of  Elegant 
Variation,  due  to  timidity,  the  fear  of  repeating  the  same  name,  is  also  to 
be  shunned  as  jargon  (p.  93).  (4)  Whoever  would  write  well  must  be  on 
his  guard  against  the  phrases  '  as  regards,'  '  with  regard  to,'  '  in  respect  of,' 
•in  connection  with,'  'according  as  to  whether'  (p.  94).  (5)  The  particular 
should  always  be  preferred  to  the  general,  the  concrete  to  the  abstract,  the 
definite  to  the  vague  (p.  100)." 


THE  COMPOSITION   OF  THE   SERMON  449 

made  a  minute  study  of  Kuskin's  use  of  adjectives  in  order 
to  follow  in  his  steps.  The  writer  cannot  believe  that  this 
IS  a  desirable  practice.  The  style  is  the  man,  and  any 
imitation  savours  of  unreality.  As  has  been  already  in- 
sisted on,  the  sermon  is  not  an  essay,  but  a  speech ;  and 
imitation  of  another  kind  of  literature  is  not  likely  to 
produce  the  most  appropriate  or  effective  style.  Each  man 
has  his  own  individuality,  and,  while  he  should  rigidly 
discipline  it,  so  as  to  correct  its  defects,  he  should  not 
attempt  to  suppress  any  excellences  it  may  possess. 

( 1 )  Without  conscious  imitation  there  may  be  insensible 
assimilation.  If  birds  of  a  feather  flock  together,  we  may 
reverse  the  proverb ;  and  if  not  literally,  it  is  figuratively 
true,  the  birds  that  flock  together  tend  to  become  of  one 
feather,  A  man  is  rightly  judged  by  the  company  he  keeps, 
because  he  becomes  like  his  companions.^  If  a  man  keeps 
good  company  in  literature,  if  his  chosen  companions  are 
the  masters  of  the  craft,  if  he  reads  carefully,  receptively 
and  responsively,  he  will  gain  their  good  manners.  There 
seems  no  better  way  of  acquiring  a  good  style  than  a  wide 
knowledge  of  good  literature,  which  will  develop  judgment 
and  taste,  and  so  afford  a  standard  of  style. 

(2)  Poetry  seems  of  greater  value  than  prose  for  the 
making  of  the  preacher's  style.  Browning  and  Meredith, 
whose  meaning  it  is  difficult  to  discover,  are  not  to  be 
commended  for  imitation,  however  interesting  and  valuable 
their  thought  may  be.  Tennyson  is  well  worth  study,  for 
he  has  most  of  the  qualities  to  be  desired  except  strength. 
The  translation  into  English  verse  of  poetry  in  a  foreign 
tongue,  although  it  may  not  result  in  poetry,  may  yet 
improve  the  style.  The  care  which  has  to  be  exercised  in 
the  choice  of  not  only  the  word  which  reproduces  the 
sense  but  also  falls  into  the  rhythm,  forms  a  habit  of 
selection  of  the  best  word  instead  of  acceptance  of  the  first 
word.  While  any  attempt  to  preserve  what  is  archaic  in 
the  Authorised  Version  of  the  Bible  is  an  affectation ;  and 
any  endeavour  to  find  "  a  language  of  Canaan  "  for  use  in 

^  Tbc  higliest  instance  of  this  principle  is  described  in  2  Go  S". 


450  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

the  pulpit  alone  would  be  absurd ;  yet  surely  very  much 
can  be  gained  from  familiarity  with  the  Bible.  Valuable 
as  Dr.  Moffatt's  Translation  is  for  purposes  of  study,  its 
language  is  not  so  appropriate  for  the  pulpit  as  the  language 
of  the  Authorised  Version  ;  and  it  is  devoutly  to  be  wished 
that  the  preachers  of  the  Twentieth  Century  may  not  imitate 
the  language  of  the  version  of  the  New  Testament  which 
bears  that  name.  Lastly,  substance  cannot  be  divorced 
from  form.  Clear  thought  and  deep  feeling  will  clarify 
and  vivify  the  style.  The  language  which  rises  out  of  the 
depths  of  the  soul  will  command  beauty  and  strength, 
colour  and  movement.^ 

8,  We  may  distinguish  the  qualities  of  style  which  are 
necessary  if  the  thought  is  to  be  conveyed  fully  and  fitly 
by  the  words,  and  those  qualities  which  give  it  beauty  and 
strength.  The  essential  requirements  are  that  the  thought 
be  expressed  with  'purity  and  lucidity.^  (1)  The  first 
quality  demands  not  only  grammatical  correctness  as 
regards  both  accidence  and  syntax,  excluding  all  solecisms, 
but  also  that  the  words  used  are  recognised  as  classic  or 
good  English  words,  so  that  all  larharisnis  shall  be  avoided. 

*  Nichol's  Primer  ofEtiglish  Composition  and  Foster's  Literary  Companion 
may  be  of  use  to  those  who  have  not  had  a  good  literary  training. 

*  Vinet,  pp.  439-464.  A  short  quotation  in  regard  to  the  qualities  to  be 
aimed  at  may  be  given  from  Quiller-Couoh's  Lectures  on  the  Art  of  Writing. 
"  Let  me  revert  to  our  list  of  the  qualities  necessary  to  good  writing,  and 
come  to  the  last — Perbuasivtness  ;  of  which  you  may  say,  indeed,  that  it 
embraces  the  whole — not  only  the  qualities  of  propriety,  perspicuity, 
accuracy,  we  have  been  considering,  but  many  another,  such  as  harmony, 
order,  sublimity,  beauty  of  diction  ;  all,  in  short,  that — writing  being  an  art, 
not  a  science,  and  therefore  so  personal  a  thing — may  be  summed  up  under 
the  word  Charm.  Who,  at  any  rate,  does  not  seek  after  Persuasion  ?  It  is 
the  aim  of  all  the  arts  and,  I  suppose,  of  all  exposition  of  the  sciences  ;  nay, 
of  all  useful  exchange  of  converse  in  our  daily  life.  It  is  what  Velasquez 
attempts  in  a  picture,  Euclid  in  a  proposition,  the  Prime  Minister  at  the 
Treasury  box,  the  journalist  in  a  leading  article,  our  Vicar  in  his  sermon. 
Persuasion,  as  Matthew  Arnold  once  said,  is  the  only  true  intellectual 
process.  The  mere  cult  of  it  occupied  many  of  the  best  intellects  of  the 
ancients,  such  as  Longinus  and  Quiutilian,  whose  writings  have  been  pre- 
served to  us  just  because  they  were  prized.  Nor  can  I  imagine  an  earthly 
gift  more  covetable  by  you,  Grentlemen,  than  that  of  persuading  your  fellows 
to  listen  to  your  views  and  attend  to  what  you  have  at  heart "  (pp.  85-36). 


THE   COMPOSITION   OF   THE   SERMON  451 

Not  only  so,  but  as  the  pulpit  is  uot  the  market  or  the 
street,  the  words  must  be  suitable  for  the  time  and  place, 
occasion  and  purpose  of  the  sermon :  there  must  be  no 
improprieties,  such  as  slang.  To  condescend  to  men  of  low 
degree  in  speech  is  not  a  virtue  for  the  pulpit.  Stilted 
language  is  ridiculous,  grovelling  language  offensive.  The 
rush  of  eloquence  may  sometimes  strain  the  syntax  to 
breaking  point ;  but  bad  grammar  is  not  good  oratory ; 
while  it  may  not  hinder,  where  unavoidable  owing  to  the 
speaker's  lack  of  previous  education,  it  does  not  further  the 
working  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that 
many  who  speak  correctly  according  to  current  usage  do 
not  show  a  keener  sense  for  the  niceties  and  subtleties  of 
speech,  which  the  language  still  retains,  as,  for  instance,  in 
the  use  of  the  subjunctive,  when  not  actuality,  but  possi- 
bility is  intended,  the  use  of  the  singular  verb  after  two 
abstract  nouns  which  as  complementary  express  one  idea, 
the  conjunctive  omission  and  the  disjunctive  insertion  of 
the  article  before  a  number  of  nouns,  etc.  (e.g.,  there  is  a 
different  meaning  between  the  joy,  the  hope,  the  strength  of 
life,  and  the  joy,  hope,  strength  of  life). 

(2)  If  the  first  demand  is  purity  the  second  is  luddity 
(or  perspicuity),  for  the  main  object  of  writing  must  be  to 
be  understood,  and  to  be  understood  without  difficulty.  If 
this  is  a  requirement  which  may  be  made  of  all  writers  it 
must  even  more  be  made  of  the  preacher,  whose  sermon  is 
to  be  heard,  and  not  read,  and  whose  meaning  must,  there- 
fore, be  grasped  at  once,  or  lost  altogether.  Lucidity  firet 
of  all  demands  simplicity  of  language,  the  use  of  words 
which  are  at  once  understood,  and  do  not  need  explanation. 
If  for  the  purpose  of  the  sermon,  in  theological  or  ethical 
exposition,  an  unfamiliar  word  must  be  used,  it  should  be 
explained.  Enough  should  be  said  to  make  the  meaning 
clear,  but  not  more ;  for  brevity  is  also  necessary  for 
lucidity.  To  indulge  in  vain  repetitions,  or  to  express 
one's  meaning  in  a  roundabout  instead  of  the  straightest 
way,  is  also  to  cause  confusion  of  mind.  Diffuseness  of 
language,  no    less    than  irrelevancy    of    matter,  must    be 


452 


THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 


avoided,  so  that  the  highway  of  thought  in  the  sermon  may 
be  easily  followed,  and  the  hearer  may  not  lose  himself 
in  bypaths.  Pregnant  words  and  compact  sentences  are 
desirable,  so  long  as  the  meaning  is  always  quite  plain. 
There  must  be  2^''^^c'^s'^on  as  regards  the  meaning,  both  of 
words  and  sentences.  There  should  be  no  ambiguity  as  to 
the  thought  any  word  conveys ;  and  the  clauses,  sentences, 
and  paragraphs  should  follow  one  another  in  such  an  order 
that  the  hearer  will  have  no  difficulty  in  following  the  sense.^ 
(3)  Order  is  the  demand  of  the  reason  on  style,  as 
the  mind  works  not  at  random,  but  by  method.  "  With- 
out order,"  says  Vinet,  "  no  lucidity,  and  without  lucidity 
no  force.  Besides,  apart  from  lucidity,  a  style  in  which 
order  reigns  is  like  a  wall  of  which  the  stones  are  well 
joined ;  it  is  very  much  more  solid  and  stronger."  *  The 
thought  should  move  from  the  more  general  to  the  more 

^  A  short  statemeut  of  the  necessary  qualities  of  writing  may  be  quoted 
from  Nichol's  Primer  of  English  Composition  (pp.  16-17).  "The  laws  of  style 
fall  under  one  or  other  of  two  classes. — Those  regarding  Accuracy  and 
Clearness  are  requisite  in  all  kinds  of  writing  to  ensure  the  faithful  presenta- 
tion of  thought.  Those  regarding  Strength  and  Grace  are  more  especially 
applicable  to  the  higher  branches  of  Prose  composition  and  to  Poetry. 

Corresponding  Viola- 


PURITY 

prescribes  the 
uae  of 


Rules  relating 
to  Accuracy 
and  Clearness 
in  Style 


Correct  forms  and 

Concords 

Classic    or    good 

I      English  words 

Proper  words,  i.e.' 
words  fit  for  \ 
the  occasion 

'Simplicity    . 


tions  of  the  Rules. 

Wrong  Forms. 

Solecisms. 

Barbarisms. 


Improprieties. 

(Roundabout,  inflated 
or  pedantic  words  or 
phrases. 

(Tautology. 
Pleonasm. 
Verbosity. 
prescribes       -\  /-Ambiguity      or      Ob- 

I      scurity — 
Precision .     .     .  -|  a.  In  words. 

I  h.  In    sentences    from 
\,        bad  arrangement. " 

*  Op.  cit. ,  p.  465.  Besides  Order,  Vinet  mentions  several  other  necessary 
qualities  of  istyle  for  the  preacher.  The  first  of  these  is  naturalness.  "The 
natural  style        that  in  which  the  art  dods  not   let  itself  be  perceived, 


THE   COMPOSITION  OF  THE  SERMON  453 

particular,  from  the  less  to  the  more  definite,  from  the 
less  to  the  more  striking.  There  should  be  an  ascending 
and  not  a  descending  interest  (climax  and  not  anti-climax). 
We  may  regard  the  quality  of  order  as  the  link  between 
the  necessary  qualities  of  style  and  those  which  invest  it 
with  the  higher  excellences. 

9.  The  preacher's  object  is  not  only  to  instruct,  but  to 
interest.  That  he  may  convey  instruction,  he  must  arrest 
interest.  Not  only  his  ideas,  but  even  the  expression  of 
them,  must  attract  attention.  It  must  not  be  common- 
place, hackneyed,  just  what  may  be  expected.  If  there 
is  an  element  of  surprise  in  the  vocabulary  or  structure, 
so  long  as  there  is  no  bewilderment,  the  attention  will  be 
sustained.  Variety  both  in  the  choice  of  words  and  the 
make  of  the  sentences  keeps  the  mind  alert.  The  danger 
of  the  ready  speaker  is  the  construction  of  the  complex 
sentences,  in  which  it  becomes  difficult,  if  not  impossible, 
to  follow  the  meaning.  It  would  be  ridiculous  to  demand, 
however,  that  all  sentences  shall  be  short  and  simple. 
A  thought  may  need  to  be  stated  with  such  limitations 
and  qualifications,  as  to  demand  a  complex  sentence,  and 

whether  art  has  not  been  mingled  with  it,  or  by  the  power  of  art.  For  the 
triumph  of  art  is  to  make  itself  forgotten  or  to  make  itself  perceptible  only 
to  reflexion"  (p.  470).  By  "  convenance  "  he  means  appropriateness  of  the 
style  to  the  ideas  expressed,  the  kind  of  composition,  the  subject  treated, 
and  the  purpose  sought  (pp.  474-475).  This  involves  simplicity,  which  for 
the  pulpit  means  popularity,  not  in  the  depreciatory  sense  now  common, 
but  in  the  proper  sense,  of  that  which  the  people  can  understand,  the 
common  thought  and  common  speech  of  all  classes.  But  popularity  even 
does  not  adequately  express  the  simplicity  of  the  pulpit.  The  people  in 
the  church  are  a  family,  and  so  popularity  should  be  familiarity  (or 
intimacy).  The  preacher  should  be  at  home  with  his  hearers,  and  they 
with  him.  '•  In  the  daily  contacts  of  life,  of  individual  with  individual, 
familiarity  brings  with  it  the  habit  of  naming  things  by  their  name ;  it 
prefers  the  individual  to  the  general  designation,  the  direct  affirmations  to 
reticences  and  allusions,  precise  to  vague  indications"  (p.  485).  On  this 
condition,  too,  the  pulpit  "  will  give  to  the  things  it  deals  with  a  vivid 
impress  of  reality."  Familiarity  should  not  lead  the  preacher,  however, 
to  put  himself  forward;  modesty  does  not  forbid  the  use  of  "I"  when 
the  preacher  as  it  were  individualises  his  congregation.  While  simple, 
popular,  familiar,  the  style  of  the  pulpit  can,  and  should  remain  noble  as 
are  its  themes.  It  will  possess  all  these  excellences  in  the  measure  in 
which  it  is  scriptural  {op.  cit.,  pp.  470-506). 


454  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

so  long  as  the  meaning  is  kept  clear,  the  longer  sentences 
will  maintain  the  variety  of  structure.  A  succession  of 
sentences,  all  made  alike,  becomes  tiresoma  A  speaker 
whose  sentences  are  all  equally  short  gives  his  hearers  a 
succession  of  shocks,  or  jolts.  Variety  may  also  be  secured 
by  the  use  of  the  imperative  or  interrogative  as  well  as 
the  indicative  mood.  It  is  not  enough  to  catch  the 
attention  at  first;  it  must  be  kept  all  through,  and  the 
interest  should  get  keener  as  the  theme  is  developed. 
This  may  seem  a  demand  regarding  the  contents  rather 
than  the  style  of  the  sermon,  but  thought  and  speech 
can  no  more  be  separated  than  body  and  soul,  and  thus 
interest  may  be  emphasised  as  an  excellence  which  the 
writer  even  in  expressing  his  thought  should  keep  in  view. 
This  he  will  command  if  his  style  has  beauty  and  strength. 
1 0.  "  Strength  and  grace  of  style  are,"  says  Nichol,  "  in 
great  measure  the  result  of  strength  and  grace  of  thought 
which  cannot  be  imparted  by  rules ;  but  there  are  some  rules 
which  have  been  found  useful  in  the  higher  branches  of 
Prose  and  even  in  Poetry."  *  (1)  That  the  language  of 
the  sermon  should  aim  at  beauty  (or  grace)  is  only  fitting, 
for,  whether  the  translation  be  correct  or  not,  there  is  a 
"beauty  of  holiness." ^  There  is  a  beauty  of  sentiment, 
affection,  aspiration  and  accomplishment ;  and  the  inward 
beauty  of  the  soul  should  be  the  source  of  the  outward 
beauty  of  the  speech.^  Mean  thoughts  richly  clothed  in 
language  cut  a  sorry  figure,  like  a    dwarf  strutting  in  a 

*  English  Composition,  p.  72.  ^  Ps  110*. 

*  What  Ruskin  says  of  the  relation  of  the  mind  to  the  body  in  respect 
of  its  beauty  may  be  applied  mutatis  mutandis  to  the  relation  of  the 
thought  and  feeling  to  speech.  "There  is  not  any  virtue,  the  exercise 
of  which  even  momentarily,  will  not  impress  a  new  fairness  upon  the 
features ;  neither  on  them  only,  but  on  the  whole  body,  both  the  intelligence 
and  the  moral  faculties  have  operation,  for  even  all  the  movements  and 
gestures,  however  slight,  are  different  in  their  modes  according  to  the  mind 
that  governs  them  ;  and  on  the  gentleness  and  decision  of  just  feeling  there 
follows  a  grace  of  action,  and,  through  continuance  of  this,  a  grace  of  form, 
which  by  no  discipline  may  be  taught  or  attained  "  {op.  cit.,  xiv.  6).  This 
statement  seems  to  require  qualification,  as  the  heavenly  treasure  does  not 
always  so  fully  change  the  earthen  vessel ;  but  it  is  generally  true  of  mind 
and  body,  and  so  also  thought  and  s  eech. 


THE  COMPOSITION  OF  THE  SERMON  455 

giant's  robe.  The  demand  for  beauty  should  be  met  not 
in  purple  passages  here  and  there  like  oases  in  a  desert ; 
but  the  sermon  should  be  as  a  whole  a  unity,  not  only 
logical,  but  eesthetic.  There  must  be  variety  in  unity ;  it 
must  be  an  organism.  As  we  have  already  seen,  the 
arrangement  must  be  regarded  from  the  oratorical  as  well 
as  the  logical  standpoint.  But  coming  to  the  language 
itself,  while  there  must  be  passages  of  exposition,  demon- 
stration, application,  in  which  lucidity  is  the  paramount 
consideration,  yet  the  sermon  will  not  be  complete  unless 
the  imagination  is  satisfied  and  the  emotions  are  stimulated ; 
and  the  way  of  the  imagination  leads  more  quickly  to  the 
emotions  than  the  way  of  the  intellect. 

(2)  Accordingly,  as  far  as  possible  in  the  language  used 
the  concrete  phrase,  which  suggests  a  picture,  should  be 
preferred  to  the  abstract  term,  which  proposes  a  problem. 
If  the  preacher  be  a  seer,  who  has  the  inner  vision  of 
eternal  spiritual  reality,  figurative  language  will  come  easily 
and  fitly  to  him.  It  is  not  a  defect  of  the  Bible,  due  to 
the  insufficient  philosophical  and  theological  education  of 
its  writei-s,  that  it  so  abounds  in  imagery,  and  the  figures 
of  speech  which  the  rhetoricians  have  recognised ;  ^  it  is  its 
excellence,  for  religion  must  so  body  forth  its  realities,  or 
else  be  silent.  What  is  most  profound  in  thought,  and 
most  sublime  in  feeling,  cannot  be  forced  into  the  rigid 
mould  of  prose,  but  must  assume  the  free  shape  of  poetry. 
How  liberally  Jesus  even  lavished  His  imagery,  so  that  the 
truth  might  be  seen  in  many  pictures.  The  informed 
preacher  will  know  that  most  common  words  are  pictures 
— faded  beyond  recognition  for  the  common  mind,  and  he 
will  try  to  visualise  his  language,  so  that  even  abstract 
terms  will  recover  their  appeal  to  his  imagination.  There 
may  be  a  "mixed  metaphor,"  when  two  words  brought 
close  together  present,  thus  visualised,  incongruous  pictures  ; 
and  eiuch  combinations  he  who  values  and  respects  words 
will  avoid. 

'■  The  writer's  A  G-uide  to  Treachers  has  givan  instances  of  this  varied  use 
of  figures  of  speech  (pp.  253-255). 


456  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

(3)  Two  cautions  must  be  added.  Numerous  quotations 
from  the  poets,  however  beautiful  they  may  be  in  them- 
selves, Nvill  not  make  the  style  of  a  sermon  beautiful,  if  they 
are  irrelevant,  not  illustrative,  but  ornamental,  if  they  do 
not  grow  out  of,  but  are  stuck  on  to  the  thought. 
Abundant  and  elaborate  scene- pain  ting,  which  appears  only 
as  ornate  decoration,  may  be  a  blemish  in  a  sermon. 
Descriptions  of  sunsets  and  waterfalls,  rolling  oceans  and 
beetling  crags,  which  are  introduced  because  the  preacher 
delights  in  fine  writing,  and  not  because  his  thought  must 
find  its  inevitable  pictorial  expression  in  them,  are  vulgar 
offences  against  the  dignity  and  solemnity  of  his  task.^ 
The  imagery  of  a  sermon  should  be,  not  elaborate,  but 
suggestive,  not  like  the  brilliant  picture  on  which  the 
imagination  rests  satisfied,  but  like  the  coloured  window 
through  which  the  sunshine  falls,  and  which  leads  the 
mind  to  the  great  world  beyond.  The  figurative  language 
should  be  coloured  truth. 

11.  With  beauty  there  must  be  allied  strength,  and  in 
the  pulpit  strength  is  even  more  necessary  than  beauty, 
although  there  is  no  reason  why  on  the  pillars  of  strength 
there  should  not  be  the  lily  work  of  beauty.^  The  sermon 
is  a  deed,  and  must  show  force.  If  it  is  not  only  to  teach 
and  please,  but  to  move,  it  must  command  the  will.  As 
regards  the  choice  of  words,  "  the  simplest  is  the  most 
expressive  word  " ;  and  yet  "  the  plainest  language  is  not 
always  the  most  forcible,"  as  the  emotions  may  be  most 
deeply  stirred,  and  through  them  the  will  be  most  strongly 

^  "Style,"  says  Quiller-Coucli,  "for  example,  is  not — can  never  be — ex- 
traneous Ornament.  You  remember,  maybe,  the  Persian  Lover  whom  I 
quoted  to  you  out  of  Newman :  how  to  convey  his  passion  he  sought  a 
professional  letter-writer  and  purchased  a  vocabulary  charged  with  ornament 
wherewith  to  attract  the  fair  one  as  with  a  basket  of  jewels.  Well,  in  this 
extraneous,  professional,  purchased  ornamentation,  you  have  something 
which  style  is  not — and  if  you  here  require  a  practical  rule  of  me,  I  will 
present  you  with  this  :  '  Whenever  you  feel  an  impulse  to  perpetrate  a  piece 
of  exceptionally  fine  writing,  obey  it — wholeheartedly — and  delete  it  before 
sending  your  manuscript  to  press.  Murder  your  darlings  "  (^On  the  Art  of 
Writing,  pp.  234-235). 

2  1   K  723, 


THE  COMPOSITION  OF   THE   SERMON 


457 


moved,  by  words  addressed  to  the  imagination  rather  than 
the  intellect.  "  In  animated  discourse  or  composition, 
vivacity  is  often  promoted  by  the  use  of  Figures  of  Speech 
in  which  words  or  phrases  are  used  in  a  sense  different 
from  that  generally  assigned  them."  As  regards  the 
number  of  words,  "  concentration  of  phrase  is  like  a  burning 
glass  which  adds  to  the  brightness  and  tlie  heat  of  the  rays 
it  gathers  into  a  focus."  A  strong  writer  will  have  a  terse, 
concise  style.  A  rapid  succession  of  short  sentences, 
questions,  warnings,  or  appeals,  not  disdaining  repetition  of 
words  or  phrases,  may  have  a  cumulative  effect  like  the 
swift,  sharp  blows  of  the  hammer.  The  interrogative  form 
of  sentence  summons  the  intellect  to  think  ;  the  imperative 
challenges  the  will  to  choose.  Language  may  sometimes 
crash  like  the  thunder  as  well  as  rustle  as  the  breeze ;  it 
may  recall  the  lofty  barren  mountain  as  well  as  the  lowly 
fruitful  plain.  As  regards  the  order  of  words,  "  rhetorical 
considerations  frequently  permit  and  sometimes  enjoin  a 
departure  from  the  ordinary  rules  of  sequence  in  prose. 
The  disposition  of  words  in  a  sentence  should  be  like  those 
of  figures  in  a  picture,  the  most  important  should  occupy 
the  chief  places."     Emphasis  is  gained  by  inversion.^ 

*  Nichol's  English  Composition,  pp.  72,  76,  93,  98.     He  gives  the  follow- 
ing list  of  Figures  of  Speech  or  generally  recognised  in  rhetoric  : 

Chief  Rhetorical  Figures  and  Forms  of  Speech. 


Resemblance. 

Contiguity. 

Contrast  or 
Surprise. 

Arrangement. 

a.  Comparison     or 

a.  Autonomasia, 

a.  Antithesis 

a.  Climax. 

Simile 

Individual    for 

and  Epigram 
h.  Hyperbole 

b.  Anti- 

h.  Metaphor 

Class 

Climax. 

1.  Identification 

h.  Synecdoche, 

c.  Irony        and 

c.  Inversion. 

of  like  quali- 

Part for  Whole 

Euphemism 

ties 

c.  Metonymy, 

2.  Identification 

Cause  for  Effect, 

of  like  things 

badge  for  Class, 

c.  Personification 

etc. 

d.  Allegory 

Miscellaneous  figures,  "less  generally  used  and  not  reducible  to  a  dis- 
tinct head  " — 

1.  Interrogation.  2.  Exclamation.  3.  Vision.  4.  Prolepsis  or  Antici- 
pation.     5.  Metalepsis  (punning).      6,  Asyndeton  (a  series  of  assertions 


.458  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

12.  These  two  qualities  of  style  Vinet  treats  uudei 
other  names,  and  his  exposition  as  that  of  a  master  is  worth 
reproduction.  Colour  is  what  he  calls  the  first  of  the 
higher  excellences  of  style,  while  movemeTU  is  the  second. 

(1)  "  What  is  it,"  he  asks,  "  to  paint  one's  thoughts,  if 
not  to  add  to  lucidity  a  vivacity  which  it  has  not  usually,  a 
force  which  it  ignores  ?  We  are  not  concerned  then  about 
painting  for  the  sake  of  painting :  it  is  the  means  and  not 
the  end.  This  sets  the  bounds,  excludes  tediousness  and 
minuteness.  In  general,  the  object  is  to  paint  and  not  to 
describe,  to  suggest  everything  and  not  to  present  every- 
thing. All  is  subordinate  to  instruction  and  to  emotion.  I 
scarcely  love  better  the  flash  of  images  in  the  sermon  than 
the  gold  in  the  garments  of  the  priest  or  luxury  in  the 
sanctuary.  Nevertheless  we  must  make  the  objects  percept- 
ible."^ "Sometimes  it  is  the  character,  the  idea  of  the 
object,  sometimes  the  outward  signs  that  the  image  makes 
stand  out.  One  of  the  methods  is  rather  like  sculpture,  the 
other  like  painting.  In  their  perfection  they  have  an  equal 
value.  .  .  .  One  can  then  seize  the  idea  either  by  some 
special  characteristic  circumstance,  or  by  varied  details.  It 
is  painting  which  without  doubt  should  be  employed  the 
of  tener,  because  it  is  within  the  reach  of  the  greater  number. 
Nevertheless  the  other  method,  which  consists  in  putting 
the  object  itself  before  the  eyes,  has  a  great  effect  fitly 
employed."*  The  method  is  either  direct  or  indirect.  The 
object  may  be  presented  in  a  description  or  an  indication. 
A  great  writer  can  in  a  few  words  give  a  whole  picture. 
This  is  ever  found  in  the  Bible.  "A  potent  and  yet 
dangerous  method  is  the  epithet,  and  it  is  often  to  this  that 
the  image  is  reduced."  '  The  danger  of  the  weak  writer  is 
the  number  of  his  empty  adjectives.  Yet,  if  it  be  desired  to 
emphasize  a  particular  characteristic,  a  number  of  adjectives 
may  be  used  with  force,  and  attention  may  be  arrested  by 
an  unexpected  adjectiva*  The  object  may  also  be  more 
indirectly  approached   by  figures  of  speech,  such  as   anti- 

without  any  conjunction).  7.  Aposiopesis  (a  sadden  breaking  off)  and 
Correotion.  8.  Catachresie  (use  of  worda  in  unnatural  sense,  a  rarely  justi- 
fiable metaphor).  The  terms  in  the  above  which  are  not  explained  explain 
themselves.  Some  of  these  figures  are  means  of  giving  the  style  beauty  and 
others  strength  (pp.  91-93). 

»  Op.  eit.,  p.  523.  »  P.  524. 

•  P.  526.  *  See  pp.  524-529. 


THE  COMPOSITION  OF  THE  SERMON  459 

thesis,  metaphor,  allegory,  simile.  The  style  of  the  pulpit 
would  gain,  if  it  were  less  abstract,  and  more  concrete.  But 
those  who  have  a  fertile  imagination,  need  to  be  warned 
against  too  abundant  use  of  imagery,  for  {a)  this  habit  may 
become  a  mental  indolence,  and  prevent  a  real  understand- 
ing ;  (6)  it  may  hide  under  a  flashy  outside  of  form  a  very 
empty  inside  of  substance ;  (c)  it  may  even,  uncorrected  by 
vigilant  thought,  introduce  and  give  currency  to  false  ideas ; 
(d)  it  tends  to  a  frivolity  which  is  inconsistent  with  the 
gravity  that  is  becoming  in  the  pulpit.^ 

(2)  "  Movement  in  style  will  consist  in  removing  the 
hearer  from  one  moral  position,  from  one  moral  situation  to 
another.  This  movement  is  not  life,  but  it  is  the  effect  and 
the  sign  of  it.  We  do  not  conceive  life  without  movement, 
and  in  the  long  run  immobility  appears  to  us  death.  These 
two  ideas  of  movement  and  of  life  unite  so  naturally  in  our 
mind  that  wherever  we  see  movement,  we  suppose  or  we 
imagine  life."^  This  excellence  of  style  should  belong  to 
the  sermon  as  an  action,  due  to  an  emotion.  *'  If  the  orator 
does  not  unite  himself  entirely  to  his  subject,  if  the  sermon 
is  not  the  action  of  man  on  man,  if  it  is  not  a  drama  with 
its  problem,  its  sudden  turns  of  fortune,  and  its  catastrophe, 
it  lacks  that  communicative  life,  and,  one  can  even  say,  that 
truth  without  which  the  oratorical  discourse  fails  of  its 
object  for  the  majority  of  the  hearers,  who  have  need  of 
feeling  the  truth  as  identified  with  him  who  expounds  it  and 
seeks  to  diffuse  it."  *  As  the  orator  is  moved  by  his  subject 
and  his  audience,  his  emotion  must  pass  into  the  movement 
of  his  style.  This  movement  must  not  in  the  pulpit  be  as 
violent  as  it  might  be  in  the  assembly  or  the  court.  Intense 
as  may  be  the  preacher's  love  of  the  Word  of  God,  it  cannot 
be  described  as  a  passion,  and  reverence  imposes  restraint. 
The  characteristic  of  the  expository  style  is  repose,  even 
although  there  may  be  movement  in  the  quick  succession  of 
the  ideas  and  the  liveliness  of  their  connections.  But  we 
pass  beyond  the  expository  style  in  the  movement,  in  which 
the  emotion  of  the  speaker  and  of  the  hearers  is  stimulated. 
The  preacher  may  seek  to  communicate  his  feeling  to  his 
congregation  directly  by  the  freedom  and  candour  of 
his  address.  Even  if  he  writes,  he  will  in  thought  gather 
his  congregation  about  him,  and  speak  to  them.     Within 

^  See  pp.  529-538.  »  P.  539. 

3  Op.   cU.,  p.    540.     These  words  recall  Phillips  Brooks'  definition  of 
preaching. 


460  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

the  expository  style  there  may  be  movement  by  repetition, 
gradation,  accumulation,  reticence,  correction,  omission, 
irony,  hyperbole,  paradox,  vision.^  Beyond  the  expository 
style,  movement  may  be  secured  by  interrogation,  exclama- 
tion, apostrophe,  personification,  dramatisation,  dialogue, 
even  prayer.^ 

(3)  Vinet  mentions  several  qualities  of  style  which 
belong  both  to  colour  and  movement,  such  as  variety  and 
elegance  (the  avoidance  of  the  vulgar  and  the  trivial),  (a) 
Variety  is  not  only  necessary  to  secure  interest  and  maintain 
attention,  but  it  is  closely  related  to  truth,  correctness,  pre- 
cision. "A  style  possessing  these  three  qualities  will  for 
the  same  reason  be  varied ;  no  one  thing  being  exactly  alike 
to  another,  to  speak  of  each  thing  just  as  it  is,  whether  in 
respect  of  words  or  in  respect  of  form,  is  to  speak  of  it 
differently :  variety  springs  from  the  root  of  things,  as  things 
themselves  are  different"^  Kepetition  shows  not  only 
poverty  of  words  but  even  of  thought,  of  knowledge,  of 
reality.  (&)  Since  elegance  has  in  it  something  conventional 
and  artificial,  it  is  in  some  respects  not  consistent  with  the 
seriousness  of  the  pulpit ;  and  yet  a  chaste  elegance  which 
does  not  display  itself,  which  is  hardly  noticeable,  which  is 
very  near  the  natural,  is  not  unsuitable  for  the  pulpit.*  In 
this  commendation  of  elegance  Vinet  will  appear  to  many  to 
betray  his  French  culture  and  taste.  Whether  the  word  be 
the  best  to  employ  in  this  connection,  it  is  well  for  the 
preacher  to  show  himself  always  the  Christian  gentleman  in 
language  as  in  manner,  and  the  Christian  gentleman  is  one 
who  himself  good,  seeks  also  the  company  of  the  good. 

13.   This  chapter    may    fitly  be  closed  with  Quiller- 
Couch's  exposition  of  the  two  paradoxes  of  style : 

(1)  "  Although  Style  is  so  curiously  personal  and  in- 
dividual .  .  .  there  is  always  a  norm  somewhere ;  in  litera- 
ture and  art  as  in  morality."  (2)  "Though  personality 
pervades  Style  and  cannot  be  escaped,  the  first  sin  against 
Style  as  against  good  manners  is  to  obtrude  or  exploit 
personality."  He  then  insists  that  "  essentially  it  resembles 
good  manners.  It  comes  of  endeavouring  to  understand 
others,  of  thinking  of  them  rather  than  for  yourself — of 
thinking,  that  is,  with  the  heart  as  well  as  the  head.     It 

'  See  (yp.  cit.,  pp.  537-554.  ^  See  op.  cit.,  pp.  554-562. 

'  P.  562.  *  See  pp.  562-568. 


THE  COMPOSITION   OF   THE   SEKMON  461 

gives  rather  than  receives ;  it  is  nobly  careless  of  thanks  or 
applause,  not  being  fed  by  these  but  rather  sustained  and 
continually  refreshed  by  an  inward  loyalty  to  the  best.  Yet, 
like  '  character '  it  has  its  altar  within ;  to  that  retires  for 
counsel,  from  that  fetches  its  illumination,  to  ray  outwards. 
Cultivate,  Gentlemen,  that  habit  of  withdrawing  to  be 
advised  by  the  best.  So,  says  F^nelon,  '  you  will  find  your- 
self infinitely  quieter,  your  words  will  be  fewer  and  more 
effectual :  and  while  you  make  less  ado,  what  you  do  will  be 
more  profitable.' "  ^ 

1  Pp.  246-248. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  DELIVERY  OF  THE  SERMON. 

1.  All  that  has  been  said  about  the  composition  of  the 
sermon  must  be  carried  on  into  the  discussion  of  the 
delivery  of  the  sermon ;  for  what  has  been  assumed 
throughout  is  that  the  preacher  is  writing  what,  if  he 
reads,  will  be  read  as  if  spoken,  or  is  writing,  in  order  that 
when  he  speaks,  he  may  speak  the  better.^  But  the 
question  arises:  Should  the  preacher  read  or  speak 
without  manuscript  ? 

(1)  There  is  one  method  of  delivery,  which  the  writer 
cannot  approve  for  most  men,  even  although  some  great 
preachers  have  followed  it :  it  is  the  committing  the 
sermon  to  memory  verbatim  and  then  reciting  it.  To 
this  way  there  seem  to  be  two  objections :  On  the  one 
hand,  what  a  slavish  task  this  learning  by  heart  must  be, 
what  a  strain  on  the  mind  and  waste  of  time  it  must 
involve  !  On  the  other  hand,  how  stiff  and  lifeless  the 
delivery  in  most  cases  must  be !  For  the  effort  to 
remember  must  hinder  the  freedom  of  utterance.  The 
writer  has  heard  some  preachers,  who  follow  this  method, 
speak  as  if  they  were  with  difficulty  reading  their  sermon 
from  the  back  wall  of  the  church.  If  a  man  can  after 
reading  his  MS  only  half  a  dozen  times  recall  its  contents 
without  strain,  and  so  can  deliver  with  freshness  and 
force,  the  objection  falls  to  the  ground ;  but  these  are  only 
a  happy  few ;  for  most  men  this  method  must  be  a 
grievous  burden. 

(2)  The  advantage  of  reading  is  that  most  men  will 

*  A   passage  in    Bishop  Boyd  Carpenter's  Lectures  on  Preaching,    pp. 
156-159,  deals  with  this  question. 


THE  DELIVERY  OF  THE  SERMON  463 

deliver  their  message  in  the  befet  form  as  regards  both 
contents  and  style ;  and  they  will  avoid  more  easily  dififuse- 
ness,  irrelevance  and  lack  of  polish.  Unless,  however, 
the  preacher  is  a  master  of  the  art  of  reading,  so  that  it 
appears  and  makes  the  impression  on  the  hearers  of  free 
speech,  the  delivery  will  not  be  so  direct  and  forceful ;  he 
will  not  come  into  as  close,  living  touch,  through  his  whole 
personality,  with  his  hearers.  If  he  needs  to  read  closely, 
the  hearers  wUl  miss  the  spell  of  kindUng  and  flashing  eye, 
of  the  full  expression  of  feeling  in  the  features  and  by 
gestures.  The  voice,  too,  unless  the  preacher  is  a  consum- 
mate artist,  will  not  rise  and  fall  with  the  thought,  or 
change  with  all  the  varieties  of  emotion  through  which  he 
himself  is  passing.  Can  the  read  sermon  have  for  himself 
all  the  freshness  of  free  speech,  and  can  he  make  fresh  for 
others  what  he  does  not  himself  feel  freshly  ?  There  are 
so  many  eminent  preachers  who  read  their  sermons  so 
admirably,  that  it  is  only  with  great  diffidence  that  these 
objections  are  offered  :  but  they  apply  to  the  avemge  men 
who  read,  and  are  offered  for  their  consideration. 

(3)  The  preacher  who  does  not  recite  from  memory, 
or  read  from  MS  but  speaks  freely,  may  follow  several 
courses  in  his  preparation,  (a)  He  may  write  out  his 
sermon  fully,  read  it  over  carefully,  but  not  attempt  to 
commit  it  to  memory.  His  thought  will  be  more  orderly, 
and  his  style  probably  more  literary  than  if  he  had  not 
written  at  all.  There  is  always  the  danger,  however,  that 
this  method  will  slip  back  into  the  method  of  memorising ; 
and  that  without  intending,  the  preacher  will  be  trying  to 
recall  what  he  has  written,  although  he  has  not  tried  to 
commit  it  to  memory.  His  delivery  will  inevitably  suffer. 
If  the  preacher  has  not  other  literary  work  to  do,  he 
should  certainly  write  one  sermon  at  least  each  week  for 
the  reasons  given  in  the  previous  chapter ;  but  if  he  can 
keep  his  style  literary  by  other  means,  the  writing  out  of 
the  sermon  in  full  may  be  a  hindrance  rather  than  a  help 
to  effective  delivery. 

(b)  At  the  opposite  extreme  from  the  preacher  who 


464  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

writes  out  his  sermon  fully,  is  he  who  puts  down  only  the 
main  thoughts  in  notes,  and  with  or  without  the  aid  of 
them,  develops  his  theme  in  the  pulpit.  The  great  peril 
of  this  method,  unless  he  is  a  genius,  is  vagueness  of 
thought,  diffuseness  of  language,  and  a  lack  of  continuity. 
The  transitions,  the  importance  of  which  was  emphasised 
in  a  previous  chapter,  will  be  absent  altogether,  or  be 
awkwardly  managed. 

(c)  Between  the  two  extremes  is  the  preacher  who 
writes  an  outline  of  his  sermon,  in  which  the  leading 
thoughts  are  carefully  expressed,  and  the  continuity  of 
thought  is  strictly  maintained,  so  that  the  sermon  as  a 
whole  is  given  in  a  condensed  form,  and  needs  only  to  be 
expanded  in  free  speech.  He  knows  his  starting-point, 
his  course,  and  his  goal ;  but  his  steps  by  the  way  are  not 
fixed.  This  is  the  method  the  writer  has  been  led  to  adopt 
after  trial  of  other  methods ;  but  whether  it  would  suit 
others  as  it  suits  himself  he  will  not  venture  to  say. 

(4)  He  would  urge,  however,  the  advantage  of  the 
spoken  over  the  read  sermon.  An  audience  can  kindle 
the  speaker  by  its  enthusiasm,  or  responsiveness ;  it  can 
even  put  him  on  his  mettle  by  its  indifference  or  opposi- 
tion. Some  men  can  think  more  clearly,  and  express 
their  thought  more  freely  and  fitly,  face  to  face  with 
hearers  than  in  the  quiet  of  the  study ;  and  they  will  give 
their  best  in  free  speech  rather  than  in  a  read  manuscript. 
That  the  read  sermon  involves  more  careful  preparation 
than  the  spoken  is  one  of  the  delusions  of  those  who  read 
their  sermons,  and  cannot  do  otherwise,  and  thus  must 
make  a  merit  out  of  their  defect.  It  may  be  that  the  one 
sermon  may,  if  written,  require  longer  special  preparation 
than  if  spoken ;  but  the  general  preparation,  to  which  the 
writer  inclines  to  attach  even  more  importance,  of 
thorough  discipline  of  all  the  powers  must  be  more  exact- 
ing for  the  man  who  aims  at  speaking  as  well  as  another 
writes.  A  man  must  be  fuller  of  his  subject,  more 
possessed  by  it,  who  is  to  speak  freely  of  it  without  having 
what    he   has   written   before    him.     The  danger   of  free 


THE  DELIVERY   OF   THE   SERMON  465 

speech  without  writing  has  already  been  recognised  in  the 
previous  chapter ;  but  these  dangers  can  be  avoided.  If 
the  spoken  sermon  may  lack  some  of  the  literary  finish  of 
the  written,  it  is  likely  to  have  more  living  force.  Unless 
by  persons  who  affect  a  superior  culture,  the  spoken  sermon 
is  generally  preferred  to  the  read.  The  speaker  comes  into 
closer  contact  with  his  hearers ;  he  can  receive  from  and 
respond  to  them  more  fully  and  freely,  and  they  receive 
from  and  respond  to  him  more  readily ;  the  living  bond  is 
more  tightly  knit.  The  writer  believes  most  heartily  in 
thorough  preparation,  and  yet  he  ventures  to  ask  whether 
he  who  speaks  freely  is  not  quicker  to  gain  and  fitter  to  use 
any  illumination  and  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  God  which 
the  time  and  place,  the  occasion  and  the  environment  may 
be  the  necessary  condition  of  conveying,  and  which  could 
not  have  come  to  him  in  his  own  study  ? 

2.  Whatever  be  the  view  taken  of  the  best  way  of 
delivery — and  the  writer  does  not  desire  to  press  his  own 
decided  preference — it  will  surely  be  admitted  that  even 
the  preacher  who  thinks  it  best  to  read  his  sermons  should 
endeavour  as  far  as  he  can  to  acquire  the  art  of  free 
speech.  A  minister's  usefulness  is  hindered  if  he  cannot 
speak  the  word  in  season  without  elaborate  preparation. 
If  this  be  so,  then  it  is  worth  while  considering  how  this 
facility  can  be  acquired.^ 

(1)  In  the  first  place,  there  must  be  fidness  of  knowledge  ; 
if  a  man  is  full  of  his  subject,  he  will  speak  more  readily 
and  easily,  other  things  being  equal,  than  the  man  who 
knows  little  about  it.  And  surely  it  is  not  an  unreason- 
able demand  to  make  of  the  preacher  that  he  should  be 
full  of  his  subject.  He  should  know  his  Bible  and  his 
Gospel  in  so  abounding  measure  that  it  should  not  be 
difficult  for  him,  if  necessity  be  laid  upon  him,  or  even 
opportunity  offer,  to  deal  with  a  familiar  text  or  a  familiar 
truth  without  special  preparation.  It  is  not  suggested 
that   the  preacher  should  make  a  practice  of  going  into 

*  See  The  Art  qf  Extempore  Speaking,  by  Ford  ;  Extempore  Speaking, 
by  Foster  ;  The  Art  of  Public  Speaking,  by  S.  L.  Hughes. 


466  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

the  pulpit  unprepared,  and  of  relying  on  the  Spirit  for 
utterance  (indolence  masquerading  as  piety).  For  only  he 
who  is  constant  and  diligent  in  preparation  will  possess 
the  fulness  of  knowledge  which  will  enable  him  to  meet 
with  credit  and  success  such  an  emergency.  The  general 
preparation  must  be  very  thorough  to  allow  a  man  to 
do,  when  necessary,  without  the  special  preparation. 

(2)  Secondly y  clearness  of  thought  is  essential.  The 
man  who  is  still  fumbling  about  in  his  theology,  who  has 
not  thought  out  definitely  the  solution  of  its  problems, 
should  not  run  the  risk  of  speech.  Not  only  will  he 
himself  be  confused,  but  in  his  hearers  "  confusion  will  be 
worse  confounded."  Is  it  unreasonable,  however,  to  expect 
a  preacher  to  have  thought  out  his  message  before  he 
attempts  to  deliver  it  ?  There  need  be  no  closed  mind, 
no  arrest  of  thinking,  no  premature  conclusion  of  inquiry, 
but  there  may  nevertheless  be  distinctness  and  certainty 
about  the  truths  to  be  preached.  A  man  has  not  really 
grasped  a  truth  for  himself  until  it  has  for  his  mind 
assumed  so  definite  an  expression  that  he  can  convey  his 
meaning  to  others.  In  conversation  with  others  thought 
does  often  become  more  distinct  and  certain  ;  but  distinct- 
ness and  certainty  there  must  be  before  public  speech. 

(3)  Thirdly,  not  only  must  the  single  ideas  be  clear, 
but  there  must  be  an  orderly  arrangement  of  them  in  the 
mind.  The  minds  of  some  men  are  like  a  lumber-room, 
in  which  many  valuable  articles  are  stored,  but  which  offers 
no  comfort  or  pleasure  as  a  human  habitation.  There  are 
associations  of  ideas,  there  are  logical  connections  of 
thought,  there  is  a  unity  of  the  mind  amid  all  the  variety 
of  its  contents :  and  he  who  would  speak  well  must  have 
an  intellectual  organism,  with  the  parts  properly  disposed 
in  the  whole.  Even  a  few  minutes  to  set  the  thoughts 
in  order  is  what  every  speaker  must  have  if  he  is  not  to 
talk  at  random.  The  habit  of  preparing  an  outline  which 
will  not  be  a  series  of  detached  notes  (a  method  leading 
to  a  series  of  speeches,  rather  than  one  speech),  but  a 
development,  in  however  condensed  a  form,  of  the  contents 


THE   DELIVEEY  OF  THE   SERMON  467 

of  the  sermon,  should  be  formed  even  by  the  preacher  who 
reads  his  sermon,  as  it  will  develop  in  him  the  faculty  of 
orderly  arrangement.  If  his  written  sermon  does  not  and 
cannot  yield  him  such  an  outline,  he  will  have  learned  a 
lesson  as  to  the  necessity  of  structure  in  an  utterance  which 
he  desires  to  be  both  understood  and  remembered.  There 
are  various  aids  to  memory  offered  to  public  speakera ;  but 
none  can  compare  in  value  with  the  faculty  of  thinking  in 
so  orderly  a  way  that  in  speech  the  ideas  will  follow  one 
another,  not  by  an  effort  of  memory,  but  rather  by  the 
inevitable  progress  of  the  thought.^ 

(4)  Fourthly,  the  speaker  should  aim  at  possessing  as 
abundant  and  varied  a  vocabulary  as  possible,  not  that  he 
may  be  repetitious  and  diffuse,  but  that  he  may  be  able  to 
choose  out  of  the  number  of  words  which  present  them- 
selves to  his  mind  the  "  inevitable  "  word.  It  is  painful  to 
listen  to  a  man  who  is  aware  that  he  has  not  succeeded  in 
saying  just  what  he  wanted  to  say,  and  so  tries  and  tries 
again,  and  perhaps  never  gets  what  he  wants.  There  are 
slight  shades  of  difference  in  the  meaning  of  words  for  the 
cultured  which  for  the  uncultured  bear  the  same  sense; 
and  the  speaker  should  in  his  reading  and  thinking 
accustom  himself  quickly  to  detect,  and  instantly  to  observe 
these   differences.     While    repetition    may    be    used   as  a 

^  A  knowledge  of  Logic  will  not  necessarily  make  an  orderly  thinker, 
although  such  knowledge  is  not  to  be  depreciated.  While  a  sermon  must 
not  be  thrown  into  the  forms  which  Logic  provides,  yet  familiarity  with 
the  main  modes  of  reasoning,  induction  and  deduction,  the  argument  from 
analogy,  from  like  to  like,  or  a  fortiori,  from  less  to  greater,  the  argumentum 
ad  hominem,  or  the  redudio  ad  absurdum  may  sharpen  the  intellectual  tool 
or  weapon  of  the  speaker.  An  acquaintance  with  the  logical  fallals  may 
save  him  from  mistake.  Going  beyond  the  bounds  of  formal  logic  to  what 
Hegel  understood  by  that  term,  the  discussion  of  the  categories  of  human 
thought,  the  preacher  may  here  learn  much  as  regards  the  thinking  of 
things  together.  The  appropriate  categories  may  give  him  the  question 
he  shall  ask  about  the  reality  with  which  he  wishes  to  deal  ;  and  while  all 
this  apparatus  of  the  laboratory  of  thought  must  be  kept  out  of  the  pulpit, 
yet  he  will  not  be  less  efiFeotive  in  the  pulpit  who  knows  how  to  use  it  in 
his  own  thinking.  But  as  the  companionship  of  good  writers  improves  the 
style,  so  will  a  knowledge  of  the  great  thinkers,  scientific,  philosophical, 
theological,  improve  the  thought.  It  seems  quite  unnecessary  to  mention 
or  recommend  any  special  books  for  this  purpose. 


468  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

rhetorical  device  to  increase  an  impression,  yet  the  use  of 
the  same  word  again  and  again  because  the  speaker  can 
command  no  other  is  wearisome.  What  might  be  called 
a  sensitive  verbal  conscience,  which  does  not  blur  distinc- 
tions, is  a  quality  which  the  speaker  should  take  great 
pains  to  cultivate.  The  reading  which  makes  the  full  man 
must  be  combined  with  the  writing  which  makes  the  exact 
man,  if  the  speaker  is  to  be  indeed  the  ready  man,  not  only 
able  to  keep  on  talking  with  "  the  fatal  fluency "  with 
which  some  are  endowed,  but  so  the  master  of  speech  that 
he  can  speak  both  with  fulness  and  accuracy  not  only  of 
word,  but  also  of  thought.  Only  such  a  gift  of  speech  is 
worth  coveting. 

(5)  While  the  advantage  of  developing  the  gift  of 
ready  speech  even  when  there  is  not  much  time  for  special 
preparation  has  been  insisted  on,  it  should  now  be  added 
that  a  man  will  speak  best  on  a  subject  on  which  he  has 
just  before  speaking  been  meditating,  passing  through  his 
mind  not  necessarily  the  terms  and  phrases  he  will  use,  but 
certainly  the  thoughts  in  their  proper  order.  By  so  doing 
his  mind  has,  as  it  were,  made  a  beaten  track  along  which 
his  thoughts  will  travel  easily  and  quickly.  This  previous 
absorption  in  the  subject  has  also  an  emotional  value.  The 
themes  with  which  the  preacher  deals  are  such  that  if  he 
lets  his  mind  dwell  upon  them,  his  heart  also  will  be  stirred 
in  its  depths.  As  he  muses,  the  fire  of  adoration,  gratitude, 
devotion,  aspiration,  will  bum.  In  speaking,  this  emotion 
must  at  first  be  restrained,  because  the  speaker  must  try 
to  put  himself  in  touch  with  his  hearers  by  sharing  their 
mood  in  order  that  by  his  speech  he  may  bring  them  over 
to  share  his.  This  restraint  of  emotion  will,  however,  not 
weaken,  but  strengthen  the  effectiveness  of  his  speech.  It 
will  make  his  intellect  keener,  his  imagination  more  vivid, 
his  language  more  copious.  By  letting  himself  go  only 
gradually  his  passion  kindles  a  corresponding  passion  in 
his  hearers,  and  the  flow  of  emotion  should  not  be  reached 
at  the  beginning,  but  at  the  end  of  a  speech.  If  the 
speaker's  own  emotion  begins  to  ebb  before  he  reaches  the 


THE   DELIVERY  OF  THE  SERMON  460 

end  of  his  speech  he  will  lose  his  hold  of  his  hearers. 
Many  speakers  go  on  after  the  high  tide  is  passed,  and 
end  at  the  low. 

3.  The  voice  of  the  speaker  is  of  very  great  importance. 
Here  nature  does  more  than  art  can  do.  It  is  true  that 
speakers  whom  nature  had  very  poorly  endowed  have  by 
discipline  greatly  improved  the  effectiveness  of  their  voice. 
But  undoubtedly  the  man  who  has  to  begin  with  a  clear, 
full,  carrying  voice  has  a  very  marked  advantage;  if  his 
voice  is  also  an  instrument  of  wide  range  so  that  he  can 
express  many  emotions  with  it,  he  has  one  of  the  best  gifts 
a  preacher  could  desire.^  Apart  from  physical  defects 
so  serious  as  to  prevent  distinct  speech,  nature  can  be 
corrected  and  improved  by  discipline.  Many  men  speak 
badly  because  they  have  not  taught  themselves  to  speak 
welL  For  expressive  speech  it  should  be  possible  to  raise 
and  drop  the  voice  through  a  wide  range  of  pitch  ;  but 
unfortunately  the  architects  of  many  churches  seem  to 
have  thought  of  everything  except  the  acoustics,  and  in 
order  to  be  heard  the  preacher  must  maintain  an  almost 
uniform  tone.  It  is  possible,  however,  even  when  lowering 
the  voice,  to  project  it  by  the  proper  muscular  effort,  so 
that  it  will,  as  it  were,  be  sent  out  even  to  the  remote  parts 
of  the  building.  If  the  preacher  is  so  moved  by  his  theme, 
however,  he  is  likely  to  forget  this  necessity ;  and  some  of 
his  most  impressive  words  and  phrases  may  be  most  indis- 
tinctly heard.  What  has  to  be  remembered  is  that  it  is 
not  only  distinctness  of  utterance  which  is  necessary,  but 

^  How  wonderful  a  gift  the  voice  is  may  be  shown  by  a  quotation.  "The 
'human  voice  divine'  is  perhaps  man's  most  godlike  gift.  Its  capabilities 
of  sound- production,  in  every  variety  of  intensity  and  modulation,  is 
practically  illimitable.  From  the  shriek  of  horror  down  to  the  gasping 
whisper  of  despair,  it  runs  through  the  gamut  of  expression  of  every  human 
feeling  and  passion — now  pouring  forth,  trumpet-like,  fiery  denunciation, 
now  calmly  enunciating  everyday  thoughts  and  desires,  and  anon,  in  flute- 
like sweetness,  giving  utterance  to  the  tender  accents  of  love.  The  magic 
of  a  rich  and  powerful  voice  thrills  every  human  being  within  its  range  ;  its 
vibrations  set  in  motion  the  common  ties  of  race  and  humanity  ;  it  stirs  into 
unison,  or  perhaps  throws  into  discord,  the  thoughts  and  feelings  of  all 
whom  it  reaches  "  ( Voice,  Speech  and  Gesture,  p.  72). 


470  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

also  this  projection  of  the  voice  to  the  remotest  part  of  the 
building. 

4.  The  writer  has  consulted  a  number  of  teachers  of 
elocution,  and  has  discovered  that  each  has  his  own  system, 
and  that  there  is  no  book  on  the  subject  which  all  could 
or  would  unreservedly  recommend ;  and  the  subject,  it 
must  bo  admitted,  lends  itself  much  more  to  personal 
instruction  than  to  general  treatment  in  a  text-book.^ 
There  are  also  physical  and  physiological  technicalities 
involved  which  could  not  be  properly  treated  here.  The 
preacher  should  seek  a  training  from  a  competent  teacher. 
A  few  notes  on  the  objects  of  such  training  may  be  offered. 
(1)  First  in  importance  assuredly  is  voice  production.  The 
raw  material  of  the  voice  is  the  breath,  and  that  there 
should  be  an  abundance  of  that  raw  material  is  essential. 
Many  children  have  never  learned  to  breathe  properly ; 
and  there  are  many  speakers  who  have  not  repented  of  the 
sins  of  their  youth  in  this  respect.  Abdominal  breathing 
by  lowering  the  diaphragm  and  not  thoracic  by  raising  the 
ribs,  is  what  is  recommended,  so  that  the  lungs  may  be 
well  filled  with  air,  and  the  voice  may  be  sustained.  The 
breath,  even  if  abundant,  has  to  be  properly  directed  by  the 
organs  of  speech.  Some  speakers  begin  the  process  of 
making  breath  into  voice  too  soon,  and  use  the  throat  too 
much  instead  of  the  mouth.  By  violent  unnatural  contrac- 
tions of  the  throat  they  force  the  voice.  Not  only  by 
this  abuse  do  they  soon  tire,  but  they  often  bring  on  disease, 
such  as  "the  minister's  throat."  Speaking,  if  properly 
done,  should  not  tire  nor  injure  any  of  the  organs  of  speech. 

(2)  Next  in  order  comes  enunciation  or  articulation ; 
the  distinct  expression  of  any  sound.  There  are  some 
letters  which  are  found  more  difficult  to  give  distinctly 
than  others ;  and  speakers  vary  as  regards  their  difficulties. 

*  A  few  books  may,  however,  be  mentioned.  Newlands,  Voice  Produc- 
tion and  the  Phonetics  of  Declamation  ;  Rice,  Voice  Production  with  the  aid 
of  Phonetics ;  Foster's  Voice  Production ;  Voice,  Speech  ajt/f-  Gesture,  edited 
by  Blackman.  In  the  last  volume  a  statement  is  made  by  Dr.  Campbell, 
well  worth  repeating:  "I  have  often  observed  marked  improvement  in 
health  result  from  the  proper  use  of  the  vocal  organs  "  (p.  42). 


THE   DELIVERY   OF  THE  SERMON  471 

Each  of  the  consonants  should  be  practised  by  frequent 
and  rapid  repetition  until  it  is  produced  easily  and  clearly. 
As  different  letters  are  enunciated  with  different  parts  of 
the  organ  of  speech,  all  these  parts  should  be  exercised. 
"  Elasticity  of  movement  in  the  lower  jaw,  and  mobility  of 
the  lips,  tongue,  soft  palate,  and  pharynx  are  necessary  for 
good  articulation."^  The  hps  are  used  in  enunciating  p 
and  6  (the  labials),  the  teeth  t  and  d  (the  dentals),  the 
upper  part  of  the  throat  h  and  g  (the  gutterals),  and  cor- 
responding to  these  are  the  spirants  /  and  v,  th,  etc.  If  a 
speaker  finds  any  difficulty  with  any  letter,  he  should 
exercise  the  proper  organ  until  it  has  gained  the  necessary 
flexibility.  There  are  a  few  letters  which  present  excep- 
tional difficulty  to  some  speakers,  thus  I  and  r  (liquids)  are 
often  interchanged,  with  sometimes  ludicrous  results ;  m 
and  n  are  also  dangerously  alike.  The  sounds  s,  sh,  z  (the 
sibilants)  and  also  th,  st  are  hard  to  produce,  especially 
when  a  number  come  together.  *'  Where  neither  moth 
nor  rust  doth  corrupt,  and  where  thieves  do  not  break 
through  nor  steal,"  ^  is  a  text  which  affords  good  practice 
in  overcoming  this  difficulty.  If  Scotsmen  can  be 
reproached  for  their  rolling  r's  (wourrld),  Englishmen  must 
bear  the  blame  of  extinguishing  the  life  of  this  letter 
altogether  (wold  for  world).  Every  letter  has  a  right  to 
the  preservation  of  its  existence ;  and  the  tendency  to  kill 
letters  should  be  resisted. 

(3)  After  articulation  comes  accent,  "  the  stress  of  the 
voice  on  a  particular  syllable  of  a  word.  All  words  of 
more  than  one  syllable  have  a  primary  accent,  and  many 
polysyllables  have  a  secondary  accent,  less  clearly  marked, 
in  addition  to  the  primary  one ;  thus  grdUfid,  ingrdtitude, 
incomprdssibility.  Accent  is  generally,  but  not  always, 
upon  the  most  important  or  root  syllable  of  a  word.  .  .  . 
Accent  is  moved  from  one  syllable  to  another  when  a  word 
is  compounded:  thu&,  dccid€nt,accidSntal;  Jidrmony,  harmdni- 
mis.  It  is  used  also  to  distinguish  the  same  word  when 
employed  as  different  parts  of  speech  ;  e.g.  c&ncert,  concert ; 

*  Newlands,  V»ice  Production,  p. '  94.  2  -^^  g2o_ 


472  THE  CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

Aiigust,  augilst;  rdhel,  reMl.  Without  accent  speech  would 
be  monotonous  both  as  regards  tone  and  time,  for  the  stress 
of  the  voice  intensifies  the  one,  like  the  beat  in  music,  and 
varies  the  other,  like  the  distinction  between  crotchets  and 
quavers."  ^  As  the  above  examples  show,  the  tendency  in 
English  is  to  throw  the  accent  to  the  beginning  of  the  word, 
unless  there  be  some  reason  to  the  contrary.  Many  varia- 
tions of  pronunciation  are  due  to  the  shifting  of  the  accent, 
e.g.,  vd^ary  for  vagdry,  dcceptaUe  for  acceptable,  sdjourn  for 
soj&wrn.  One  hears  from  the  pulpit  DeMerdnomy  and 
Diuteronomy,  and  at  one  meeting  the  writer  heard  cenUen- 
ary,  centenary  and  c^ntennary.  In  verse  the  accent  may 
be  shifted  for  the  sake  of  melody :  may  not  impassioned 
speech  also  claim  this  right  ? 

(4)  Native  accent  should  be  distinguished  from  vulgar- 
isms of  pronunciation.  A  speaker  often  spoils  his  speech 
by  trying  to  acquire  another  than  his  native  accent,  as 
when  a  Scotsman  "  eats  London  bun  "  (to  use  a  phrase  the 
writer  once  heard),  and  tries  to  speak  "  high  English." 
Is  there  any  district  of  England  which  can  claim  to  have 
the  correct  accent,  and  finds  its  claim  generally  admitted  ? 
Do  even  all  men  educated  at  Oxford  and  Cambridge  speak 
with  the  same  accent,  excluding  Scotsmen  from  the 
question  ?  It  may  be  suggested  even  that  language  does 
not  lose  but  gain  by  differences  of  accent,  as  unity-in- 
difference is  preferable  to  uniformity. 

(5)  For  certain  vulgarisms,  however,  no  defence  can 
be  found ;  e.g.  the  omission  or  insertion  of  h,  the  furtive  r 
after  a  final  a,  the  impure  sound  of  many  vowels,  ai  for  a, 
i  for  a,  ou  for  o,  the  elision  of  the  aspirate  in  wh,  and  the 
dropping  of  g  at  the  end  of  the  present  participle.  While 
regarding  the  greater  part  of  the  English  language  there  is 
no  doubt  about  the  correct  pronunciation,  yet  fashion  to  a 
small  extent  rules  even  here,  and  within  narrow  limits 
some  variations  are  tolerable,  e.g.  tenure  or  tSnure,  isolate 
or  Isolate.  "  The  best  advice  that  can  be  given  to  the 
student  upon  this  subject  is  to  exercise  a  keen  ear  to  the 

*  E.  P.  Brewer  in  Voice,  Speech  and  Gesture,  pp.  67-68. 


THE  DELIVERY  OF  THE  SERMON  473 

speech  of  highly  educated  men  and  women,  and  to  consult 
a  good  dictionary  in  cases  of  doubt."  ^ 

(6)  The  words  distinctly  enunciated,  properly  accented, 
and  correctly  pronounced  must  then  be  projected  as  has 
already  been  mentioned.  The  words  should  not  be 
allowed,  as  it  were,  to  roll  to  the  lips  and  then  fall  over ; 
they  should  be  shot  out  as  at  a  target  to  the  farthest  part 
of  the  building.  "  In  public  speaking  an  additional  force 
is  added  by  a  propelling  movement  from  the  lower  part  of 
the  chest ;  in  ordinary  conversation  the  breath  is  propelled 
out  of  the  mouth  by  the  pharynx.  Not  only  do  the  chest 
movements  add  to  the  articulation  and  make  the  sound- 
wave travel,  but  they  indicate  whether  a  speaker  is  animate 
or  inanimate."  2  If  a  speaker  has  his  eye  fixed  on  the 
hearer  in  the  back  gallery,  and  thinks  himself  speaking  to 
him,  he  wiU  with  little  consciousness  of  effort  make  the 
necessary  movement. 

(7)  The  last  words  of  the  preceding  quotation 
"  animate  or  inanimate  "  carry  us  over  to  the  next  require- 
ment in  speaking,  expression,  (a)  This  was  the  subject  to 
which  the  older  teachers  of  elocution  gave  special  atten- 
tion ;  but  their  instruction  was  often  far  too  artificial. 
Expression  cannot  be  reduced  to  rules,  it  cannot  even  be 
taught;  at  least  not  the  kind  of  expression  which  is 
suitable  for  the  pulpit.  An  elocutionary  display,  a 
dramatic  recital  is  out  of  place  in  the  pulpit.  The 
exaggeration  of  expression  which  usually  characterises 
these  performances  must  be  most  carefully  avoided. 
Eestraint  rather  than  excess  of  expression  is  to  be  com- 
mended. When  a  sermon  is  read,  more  deliberate  art  is 
necessary  to  secure  appropriate  and  effective  expression. 
In  free  speech,  expression  comes  more  easily.  The  activity 
of  the  mind,  the  movement  of  the  feelings,  and  even  the 
resolve  of  the  will  to  impress  and  influence  combine  to 
make  speech  expressive.  The  more  vivid  the  imagination, 
the  more  intense  the  emotions,  the  better  will  the 
expression  be.     As  a  man  realises  in  his  whole  personality 

^  Op.  cit.,  p.  68.  '  Newlands,  Voice  Production,  p.  105. 


474  THE  CHRISTIAN  PREACHER 

what  his  lips  are  uttering,  his  varying  tones  will  convey 
his  meaning  and  his  aim  to  his  hearers.  Inwardly  see 
and  feel  what  you  outwardly  utter,  and  you  will  so  speak 
that  others  will  see  and  feel  with  you.  The  purpose  of  ex- 
pression is  to  transfer  the  personality  of  the  preacher  to  his 
hearers,  so  that  his  words  shall  live  and  work  in  them  even 
as  in  him.  Expression  by  rule  seems  to  the  writer  too 
artificial  for  the  sincerity  and  intensity  which  the  pulpit 
demands.  Nevertheless  a  knowledge  of  the  means  of 
expression  given  in  the  voice  may  guide  the  preacher  in 
making  the  best  and  the  most  of  his  personality. 

(b)  Some  of  the  means  by  which  the  voice  becomes 
expressive  may  be  mentioned.  Just  as  accent  is  the  stress 
of  the  voice  on  a  syllable,  so  emphasis  is  on  a  word.  The 
important,  significant  word  is  emphasised  by  a  pause 
before  and  after  it ;  and  by  change  of  the  pitch  of  the 
voice.  A  wrong  emphasis  may  change  the  meaning  of  a 
sentence,  as  in  the  familiar  instance,  "  Saddle  me  the  ass. 
So  they  saddled  him  the  ass."  ^  If  a  whole  sentence  is  to 
be  thrown  into  prominence,  each  word  may  be  emphasised. 
The  rapidity  with  which  words  are  uttered  (or  the 
time  of  speech)  also  gives  variety  and  so  expressiveness. 
Strong  feeling  may  pour  itself  out  in  a  rush  of  words. 
Description,  narration,  or  explanation  demand  a  slow, 
steady  tramp.  An  aside  will  be  given  at  a  quicker  pace. 
While  a  speaker  must,  to  be  intelligible,  give  beed  to  the 
logical  pause  represented  in  writing  by  the  punctuation, 
effect  may  be  added  to  sense  by  the  rhetorical  pause. 
Attention  to  what  follows  may  be  arrested  by  the  pause ; 
a  sudden  unexpected  pause  challenges  notice  for  the  word 
next  uttered.  A  pause  at  the  wrong  place  may,  however, 
distort  the  sense,  as  in  the  well-known  tale  of  the  petition 
for  prayer:  "A  sailor  who  has  gone  to  sea,  his  wife 
requests  the  prayers  of  the  congregation,"  which  was 
read  without  the  pause  indicated  by  the  comma  and  with 
a  pause  after  wife.  The  pause  may  also  be  used  in  public 
speech,  but  hardly  in  the  pulpit,  to  "  take  in  "  an  audience, 

1 1  K  13i». 


THE  DELIVERY  OF  THE  SERMON  475 

to  "score  off"  an  interrupter.  This  has  the  element  of 
surprise,  which  appeals  to  the  sense  of  humour,  and  so  may 
offer  a  way  of  escape  from  "  a  tight  place."  While,  as  has 
just  been  mentioned,  rapidity  of  utterance  is  sometimes 
natural,  yet  usually  the  meaning  is  made  plain  by  attention 
to  proper  pauses.  An  explanatory  clause  or  sentence 
should  be  preceded  by  a  pause,  so  should  the  emphatic 
word  in  a  sentence ;  and  especially  should  a  change  of 
subject  be  so  indicated,  as  in  writing  by  beginning  a  new 
paragraph. 

(c)  A  very  important  means  of  effect  in  speech  is  the 
pitch  of  the  voice,  the  raising  or  the  lowering  of  its  tone. 
This  must  to  a  very  large  extent  be  instinctive,  correspond- 
ing to  the  emotions.  A  sudden  raising  of  the  voice  in  the 
shout  or  shriek,  which  some  preachers  practise,  is  not  only 
ineffective,  but  even  offensive.  The  skilful  change  of 
voice  from  high  to  low,  or  low  to  high,  gradually,  is 
usually  spoken  of  as  inflection;  it  does  not  involve  a 
change  of  pitch,  but  only  a  rise  and  fall  of  the  voice. 
It  is  natural,  and  accords  with  the  thought  and  the  feeling. 
A  climax  demands  the  gradual  ascent  of  the  voice.  A 
more  complex  process  of  the  voice  is  Tnodidation. 

"  What  is  meant  by  modulation,  as  applied  to  speech, 
embraces  several  of  the  rhetorical  incidents  already  con- 
sidered, and  yet  is  distinct  from  each  of  them.  It  is  partly 
made  up  of  pitch,  tone,  and  inflection,  and  at  the  same  time 
it  is  something  above  and  beyond  them.  .  .  .  What  light 
and  shade  are  to  a  picture,  and  changes  of  key  to  a  piece  of 
music,  modulation  is  to  speech.  What  accent  is  to  the 
syllables  of  a  word,  and  emphasis  to  the  words  of  a  sentence, 
modulation  is  to  a  composition  as  a  whole.  It  is  like  a 
skilful  arrangement  of  variegated  lamps  as  compared  with 
pure  and  simple  illumination.  By  modulation  is  meant  the 
exercise  of  all  those  finer  and  more  delicate  capabilities  of 
tone-production,  which  depend  more  upon  the  natural 
quality  of  the  organ  than  upon  cultivation.  It  requires  a 
perfdct  flexibility  and  command  over  all  the  gradations  of 
intonation  as  well  as  an  indefinable  timbre,  which  has  the 
power  of  establishing  a  sympathy  between  the  speaker  and 
his  audience.  .  .  .  Like  all  other  rhetorical  observances,  it 


476  THE   CHRISTIAN   PREACHER 

may  be  improved  by  cultivation,  but  its  essential  basis, 
viz.,  an  organ  of  exceptional  quality,  can  be  no  more 
obtained  by  human  effort  than  can  heroic  proportions  by  a 
man  of  meagre  frame."  ^ 

How  much  force  and  energy  a  speaker  puts  into  his 
delivery  will  depend  largely  on  his  temperament,  and  the 
degree  in  which  his  subject  possesses  him.  A  man  may 
be  very  much  in  earnest,  and  yet  fail  to  show  it ;  and  an 
emotional  man  may  throw  a  passion  into  his  speech  which 
goes  beyond  his  real  interest.  Noise  is  not  force ; 
shouting  wastes  energy.  Enthusiasm  must  be  restrained 
and  controlled  for  its  full  effect. 

5.  To  full  expression  belongs  gesture  as  well  as  utter- 
ance, for  the  whole  body  may  be  used,  and  not  the  lips 
alone.  While  violence  of  movement  and  vehemence  of 
tone  must  generally  be  avoided ;  and  the  gestures  must  be 
graceful  movements,  and  the  tones  pleasant  sounds,  unless, 
as  sometimes  may  be,  the  desired  effect  may  demand  the 
contrary,  as  in  the  expression  of  loathing,  scorn,  anger, 
the  speaker  should  claim  liberty,  and  should  not  bind 
himself  by  rules,  still  less  by  imitation  of  others.  Gesture 
should  be  appropriate  to  the  emotion  expressed :  a  doubled 
fist  does  not  enforce  a  tender  appeal,  nor  a  blow  on  the 
pulpit  clinch  a  theological  argument.  The  awkward  and 
ludicrous  must  be  carefully  avoided ;  but  the  characteristic 
gesture  of  any  speaker  is  not  to  be  condemned.  In  this 
respect  as  in  others,  spontaneity  controlled,  and  not 
artificiality  forced,  is  what  the  preacher  should  desire. 
After  dealing  very  fully  with  gesture  in  elocutionary »or 
dramatic  display,  Henry  Neville,  an  actor  and  dramatist, 
very  sanely  adds  this  caution :  "  Clergymen,  barristers, 
lecturers,  and  public  speakers  generally  must  be  governed 
by  the  different  circumstances  in  which  they  are  placed, 
and  employ  '  discriminating '  gestures  with  simplicity  and 
precision,  avoiding  the  character  and  parade  of  graces  and 
transitions  which  belong  to  the  theatrical.  They  should 
be  semi-colloquial  in  style,  and  emphatic  only  when  suited 

1  Voice,  Speech  and  Gesture,  pp.  83-84. 


THE   DELIVERY  OF   THE  SERMON  477 

to  the  manner  and  matter.  Even  then  gesture  should  not 
be  too  strongly  significant  and  emphatic,  or  surprising  in 
attitudes,  but  employed  with  manly  decorum."  ^ 

6.  It  may  appear  to  some  readers  that  there  is  a 
steep  descent  in  this  volume  from  the  discussion  of  the 
preacher  as  an  apostle  related  to  Christ,  to  the  treatment 
of  him  as  a  speaker  in  regard  to  voice,  gestures,  etc.  But 
as  the  apostle  of  Christ  even  fails  in  his  mission,  if  he  is 
not  heard  nor  understood,  he  ovees  it  to  Christ  His  Lord  to 
speak  as  distinctly  and  intelligibly  as  he  can ;  and  all  that 
has  been  discussed  in  this  chapter  has  this  as  its  sole 
object,  that  the  truth  and  grace  of  Christ  may  be  conveyed 
as  thoroughly  as  can  be  from  the  personality  of  the 
preacher  to  the  personality  of  the  hearer.  Two  extremes 
must  be  avoided.  There  are  preachers  who  are  more 
concerned  about  how  they  speak  than  what  they  say ; 
theirs  is  but  rhetoric,  which  may  deceive  some  hearers. 
There  are  preachers  also  who  are  so  absorbed  in  what  they 
say  that  they  are  careless  how  they  speak ;  their  imperfect 
utterance  narrows  the  range  and  the  force  of  their  influ- 
ence. The  preacher  who  is  careful  both  of  matter  and 
manner  may  hope,  if  he  has  the  natural  gifts,  and  submits 
to  the  necessary  discipline,  to  attain  the  eloquence  in 
which  the  heavenly  treasure  is  found  in  a  fitting  and 
worthy  earthen  vessel.  As  of  old  God's  sacrifice  had  to 
be  without  blemish,  so  should  the  preacher  seek,  as  far  as 
he  can,  to  make  his  offering  faultless  in  every  part.^  In 
the  use  of  his  body  to  make  his  delivery  of  his  message  as 
effective  as  possible,  he  can  truly  present  that  body  as  "  a 
living  sacrifice,  holy,  acceptable  to  God,  his  reasonable 
service."  ^ 

1  Op.  cit.,  p.  156.  »  Ex  12*.  »  fio  12^. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Although  most  of  the  following  works  have  been  referred 
to  or  quoted  in  the  preceding  pages,  it  will  be  a  convenience  for 
the  reader  to  have  them  brought  together  with  particulars  as  to 
publication :  the  bibliographies  on  special  subjects  given  in  foot- 
notes, however,  have  not  been  repeated,  nor  have  the  books 
referred  to  under  particular  subjects ;  the  books  here  mentioned 
are  of  a  general  character. 

PART  I. 

Der  Lehre  von  der  Predigt :  Homiletik,  von  D.  Hermann  Hering. 

I.  Halfte.  •'  Geschichte  der  Predigt."     II.  Halfte.  "  Theorie 

der  Predigt."     Berlin,  1894. 
Die  Geschichte  der  Predigt  in  Deutschland  bis  Luther,  von  Lie. 

Dr.  F.  R.  Albert.     Giitersloh,  1892. 
A  History  of  Preaching,  by  Edwin  Charles  Dargan,  D.D.,  LL.D. 

Vol.  I.  "  From  the  Apostolic  Fathers  to  the  Great  Reformers, 

A.D.  70-1572."     1905.     Vol.  II.  "From  the  Close  of  the 

Reformation  Period  to  the  End  of  the  Nineteenth  Century, 

1572-1900."     Hodder  &  Stoughton,  1911. 
Lectures  on  the  History  of  Preaching,  by  Rev.  John  Ker,  D.D. 

Hodder  &  Stoughton,  1888. 
Crowned  Masterpieces  of  Eloquence.     The  International  University 

Society.     10  vols.     London,  1914. 
ITie    World's   Great   Sermons,   compiled    by   Grenville   Kleiser. 

10  vols.     Funk  &  Wagnalls  Co.,  1909. 
Library  of  English  Literature,  edited  by  Henry  Morley  :  "  Illus- 
trations of  English  Religion."     Cassell  &  Co. 
Gh-eat  French  Sermons  from  Bossuet,  Bourdaloue,  and  Massillon, 

ed.  by  Rev.  D.  O'Mahony.     Sands  &  Co.,  1917. 
Piuritan   Preaching  in   England,   by  John  Brown,    B.A.,    D.D 

Hodder  &  Stoughton,  1900. 
The    Romance    of    Preaching,    by   C.    Silvester    Home,    M.A. 

Jas.  Clarke  &  Co.,  1914. 

478 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  479 

The  Teaching  Office  of  the  Church,  being  the  Report  of  the  Arch- 
bishop's First  Committee  of  Inquiry.     S.P.C.K.,  1918. 

Voices  of  To-day,  by  Hugh  Sinclair.     Jas.  Clarke  &  Co.,  1912. 

Nineteenth  Century  Preachers  and  their  Methods,  by  John 
Edwards.     Kelly,  1902. 

The  Man  in  the  Pulpit,  by  Jas.  Douglas.     Methuen,  1905. 

London  at  Prayer,  by  Charles  Morley.  Smith,  Elder  &  Co., 
1909. 

Short  History  of  Christian  Missions,  by  George  Smith,  LL.D., 
F.R.G.S.     T.  &  T.  Clark,  1884. 

History  of  Christian  Missions,  by  C.  H.  Robinson,  D.D. 
T.  &  T.  Clark,  1915.  -' 

Tfie  Conversion  of  Europe,  by  C.  H.  Robinson,  D.D.  Longmans, 
Green  &  Co.,  London,  1917. 

The  Story  of  the  L.M.S.,  by  C.  Silvester  Home,  M.A.  London 
Missionary  Society,  1894. 

History  of  the  London  Missionary  Society,  by  Richard  Lovett, 
M.A.     2  vols.     Henry  Frowde,  1899. 

For  Writings  of  the  Fathers,  reference  may  be  made  to 

The  Ante-Nicene  Christian  Library.     T.  &  T.  Clark,  1868  E 
The  Library  of  the  Fathers.     Parker,  Oxford,  1838-1861. 
Nicene  and  Post-Nicene  Fathers.     Oxford,  1890  ff. 

Special  Bibliographies   are   given  in   Notes  at  the  end   of 
Chapters  L  p.  43,  IL  p.  58. 

PART  n. 

Handbuch  der  Oeistlichen  Beredsamkett,  von  D.  Heinrich  Basser- 
mann.     Stuttgart,  1885. 

Predigt  Problems,  von  Prof.  D.  Otto  Baumgarten.  Tubingen, 
1904. 

Wie  predigen  wir  dem  Modernen  Menschen,  von  Lie.  theol. 
F.  Niebergall.  I.  TeiL  "Eine  Untersuchung  fiber  Motive 
und  Quietive."  Tubingen,  1905.  IL  Teil.  "Eine  Unter- 
suchung tiber  den  Weg  zum  Willen."     1906. 

Die  Predigt,  von  Liz.  Dr.  M.  Schian.     Giittingen,  1906. 

HomiUtigue  ou  Theorie  de  la  Indication,  by  A.  Vinet.  Paris 
1853. 

Homiletic :  Lectures  on  Preaching,  by  Theodor  Christlieb,  D.D. 
T.  &  T.  Clark,  Edinburgh,  1897. 


480  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Practical  Theology,  by  J.  J.  Van   Oosterzee,  D.D.     Hodder  & 

Stoughton,  1889. 
The  Christian  Minister  and  his  Duties,  by  J.    Oswald  Dykes, 

M.A.,  D.D.     T.  &  T.  Clark,  1909. 
The  Ministry  of  Reconciliation,  by  J.   R.  Gillies,   M.A.,  D.D. 

A.  &  C.  Black,  1919. 
Preparation  and  Delivery  of  Sermons,  by  John  A.  Broadus,  D.D., 

LL.D.     New  York,  1907. 
Lectures    to  my   Students,   by   C.   H.    Spurgeon.     Passmore   & 

Alabaster.     First  Series,  1877. 
Lectures  on  Preaching,  by  W.  Boyd  Carpenter,  D.D.,  Bishop  of 

Ripon.     Macmillan  &  Co.,  1895. 
Preachers  and  Teachers,  by  J.  G.  Simpson,  D.D.     Arnold,  1910. 
The  Preacher  and  the  Modern  Mind,  by  George  Jackson,  B.A. 

Charles  H.  Kelly,  1912. 
The  Work  of  Preaching,  by  Arthur  S.  Hoyt,  D.D.    Macmillan 

Co.,  1909. 
The  Preacher:    his  Person,  Message  and   Method.     Macmillan 

Co.,  1909. 
Vital  Elements  of  Preaching.     Macmillan  Co.,  1914. 
'The  Student's  Guide,  by  John  Adams,  M.A.,  B.Sc,  LL.D.     The 

University  of  London  Press,  1917. 

PART  IIL 

On  the  Art  of   Writing,   by   Sir   Arthur   Quiller-Couch,  M.A. 

Cambridge  University  Press,  1916. 
The  Art  of  Extempore  Speaking,  by  Harold  Ford,  M.A.,  LL.B. 

Elliot  Stock,  1896. 
The  Art  of  Public  Speaking,  by  Spencer  Leigh  Hughes  ("  Sub 

Rosa").     Daily  News  &  Leader,  1913. 
Voice  Production  and  the  Phonetics  of  Declamation,  by  J.  O. 

Newlands.     Oliphant,  Anderson  &  Terrier,  1906. 
Voice  Production  with  the  Aid  of  Phonetics,  by  C.   M.    Rice, 

M.A.,  A.R.C.M.     Heffer  &  Sons,  1912. 
Voice  Production,  Extempore  Speaking,  and  Literary  Composition, 

by  J.  E.  Foster.     Alfred  Watson,  Washington,  R.S.O.,  Co. 

Durham. 
Voice,  Speech  and  Gesture:  Elocutionary  Art,  edited  by  Black- 
Man.     Grant,  Edinburgh,  1912. 
Famous  Speeches,  edited  by  Herbert  Paul.     Pitman,  1910. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  481 

Special   Bibliographies  are  given  in  Notes  at  pp.  301,  303, 
306,  309,  314,  327,  338. 
"Lyman  Beecher  Lectures  on  Preaching  at  Yale  University." 
A  complete  list  will  be  found  in  Pepper's  volume,  but   the 
following  may  be  mentioned  specially  : 

Henry  Ward  Beecher  :    Yale  Lectures  on  Preaching.     J.  Clarke  & 

Co.     First  Series,  1872.     Second,  1873.     Third,  1874. 
Phillips  Brooks :  Lectures  on  Preaching  (1876-77).     Allenson's 

Handy  Theological  Library,  1903. 
K.  W.   Dale:   Nine   Lectures  on   Preaching   (1877-78).     11th 

edition.     Hodder  &  Stoughton,  1900. 
James   Stalker:     The    Preacher  and   his  Models.     Hodder    & 

Stoughton,  1892. 
Robert  F.  Horton  :   Verbum  Dei.     T.  Fisher  Unwin,  1893. 
John  Watson:  The  Cure  of  Souls.     Hodder  &  Stoughton,  1896. 
George  Adam  Smith :  Modern   Criticism  and  the  Preaching  of 

the  Old  Testament.     Hodder  &  Stoughton,  1901. 
John    Brown :     Puritan    Preaching    in    England.    Hodder    & 

Stoughton,  1901. 
P.  T.  Forsyth :  Positive  Preaching  and  Modern  Mind.    Hodder 

&  Stoughton,  1907. 
J.  H.  Jowett :  The  Preacher :  His  Life  a?id  Work.     Hodder  & 

Stoughton,  1913. 
C.  Silvester  Home:  The  Romance  of  Preaching.     Jas.  Clarke  & 

Co.,  1914. 
George   Wharton   Pepper :   A    Voice  from   the    Croxvd.    Oxford 

University  Press,  1915. 
Henry  Sloane   Coffin :   In  a   Day  of  Social  Rebuilding.    Yale 

University  Press,  1919. 
John  Kehnan :   War  and  Preaching.     Hodder  &  Stoughton,  1919. 


INDEX. 


Accent,  471. 

Adams  (J.),  298. 

Adams  (T.),  156. 

Adam  son,  229. 

Address,  356.1 

Admiration,  412. 

Adolescence,  338. 

Jllfric,  104. 

Affection,  411. 

A  fortiori  argument,  405. 

Aged,  362. 

Agricola,  132. 

Aikman,  228, 

Albertus  Magnus,  114. 

Albigenses,  108. 

Alcuin,  98. 

Alfred,  103. 

Allegorical  method,  71,  95,  111, 

129,  289,  387. 
Allegory,  37. 
Almsgiving,  67. 
Ambrose,  82. 
Amsdorf,  132. 
Amyraut,  172. 
Analogy,  386,  403. 
Analysis,  422. 
Andrea,  144. 
Andrewes,  150. 
Andrews  (H.),  54. 
Anglicans,  147  ff. 
Anglo-Saxon  sermons,  103. 
Angus,  59. 
Anselm,  100. 
Anthropomorphism,  403. 
Antony  of  Padua,  110. 
Appeal,  441. 
Apperception,  326. 
Application,  441. 
Apocalyptic,  195. 
Apologetics,  18. 
Apologists,  59. 
Apostle,  273  ff. 
Apostles,  44,  48. 
Apostolic  Fathers,  63,  66. 
Aquinas,  113. 

Archbishops'  First  Committee,  5. 
Argumentwm  ad  hominem,  409. 


Aristotle,  9,  222. 

Arminianism,  214. 

Army  and  Reliciion,  5. 

Amdt,  145,  187. 

Arnold,  (T.),  242. 

Arrogance,  312. 

Articles  {Thirty -Nine),  i. 

Articulation,  470. 

Artifidality,  313, 

Asceticism,  314. 

Athanasius,  75. 

Atonement,  26. 

Attractiveness,  32. 

Augsburg  Coyifession,  2. 

Augustine  (Father),  73,  82,  88,  90, 

98,  101,  176. 
Augustine  (missionary),  93. 
118,     Authority,  29,  276,  380,  418. 
Avarice,  81,  312. 

Baptism,  1,  46,  68,  78,  377. 
Barbarisms,  450. 
Barletta,  125. 
Bartlet,  49,  52,  58. 
Basil,  75,  77,  82. 
Bassermann,  352,  393. 
Baxter,  145,  158  f,,  187,  200. 
Beauty,  414,  444,  454. 
Bede,  95,  98,  103. 
Beecher,  253,  261,  369,  390. 
Bengel,  195. 
Bernard,  100  f.,  114. 
Berthold,  110. 
Beza,  134. 
Bilney,  139. 
Biography,  23, 
Biology,  294. 
Bishop,  51,  63,  96. 
Blaikie,  223. 
Blair,  170,  200,  353, 
Blampignon,  179. 
Blickling  Homilies,  104. 
Bogue,  232, 
Bohler,  212. 
Bohme,  195. 
Bonaventura,  112,  114. 
Boniface,  91. 
483 


484 


INDEX 


Bossuet,  176,  200. 

Boston,  167  flf. 

Bourdaloue,  176,  177  f. 

Bourne,  152. 

Brainerd,  230. 

Braun,  209. 

Breathing,  470. 

Bronz,  131  f. 

Bridaine,  175. 

Broadus,  113. 

Brooks,  8,  260. 

Brown,    99,    106,    110,    112,    152  fif., 

247  ff.,  263. 
Browning,  5,  404,  411,  449. 
Bruce,  29,  31,  32,  45. 
Bryce,  260. 
Buchheim,  128. 
Buddha,  25,  107. 
Buddhist,  10,  23. 
Buffon,  421. 
Bugenhagen,  132. 
Bunyan,  145,  152,  158,  158. 
Burke,  266. 
Burnet,  162. 
Butler,  164,  405. 
Butzer,  147. 

Caesarius  of  Aries,  88. 

Caird  (E.),  260. 

Caird  (J.),  258. 

Cairns,  251. 

Calderwood,  136. 

Calendar,  371. 

Calvin,  133,  137,  147,  214. 

Campbell,  228. 

Carey,  230. 

Carlyle(A.),  170. 

Carlyle(T.),  298. 

Carrick,  119. 

Casuistry,  42,  408. 

Categories,  433. 

Cennick,  220. 

Chaderton,  153. 

Chalmers  (J.),  237. 

Chalmers  (T.),  224,  425. 

Chantepie  de  la  Saussaye,  60. 

Charlemagne,  97,  103. 

Children,  338,  360,  374. 

Christ,  Iff.,  276,  368,  401. 

Christian  Year,  370. 

ChristUeb,  351,  377. 

Christology,  74,  82. 

Chrodegang,  96. 

Chrysostom,   64,  73,  79  f.,  84,  155, 

176,  178,  311. 
Church,  1,  45,  276,  370,  375. 
Cicero,  202, 
Clarkson,  211. 
Claude,  172. 


Claudius.  198. 

Clement  (II.),  66. 

Climax,  442. 

Cloister,  95. 

Coffin,  15,  270. 

Colour,  458. 

Columba,  91. 

Columbanus,  91. 

Composition,  343,  443  ff. 

Comte,  20. 

Conclusion,  441. 

Confirmation,  377. 

Confucius,  23,  25. 

Conscience,  13,  156,  304,  400. 

Context,  432. 

Gonvenance,  453. 

Conversion,  337,  408. 

Cook,  231. 

Cotton,  154. 

Courtiers,  171  ff. 

Cowper,  221. 

Cranmer,  147. 

Creeds,  277. 

Criticism,  289  f.,  325. 

Crusades,  100  ff. 

Cudworth,  161. 

Culdees,  91,  93. 

Culverwell,  153,  161. 

Cynics,  60. 

Cyprian,  70,  83. 

D'Ailly,  172. 

Dale,  23,  265,  288,  296,  320  f.,  390  f. 

Dargan,  102,  113,  150,  223,  253. 

David  (C),  196. 

Davidson,  23. 

Deacon,  51. 

Deduction,  368,  402. 

Definition,  394. 

Deism,  163. 

Delivery,  344,  462  ff. 

Demetrius,  60. 

Description,  394. 

Destiny,  9. 

Devotion,  308,  364. 

Diatribe,  52,  64. 

Didache,  51. 

Dietrich,  132. 

Dio  Chrysostom,  62. 

Disciples,  44. 

Discipline,  2. 

Disposition,  344,  393,  421  ff. 

Divisions,  423,  432. 

Doctrine,  2,  324,  364. 

Doddridge,  166. 

Dogmatics,  368. 

Dominic,  108  f. 

Donne,  150. 

Doxology,  81,  89. 


INDEX 


485 


Dubosc,  172. 
Duff,  234. 
Dungersheim,  124. 
Duns  Scotus,  125. 
Duty,  9,  10,  317,  364. 
Dykes,  318. 

Eck,  120. 

Eckhart,  115. 

Economics,  301,  374. 

Edification,  357. 

Edwards  (John),  247,  250,  260,  263. 

Edwards  (Jonathan),  222. 

Egotism,  345. 

Elaboration,  393. 

Elders,  51. 

Elegance,  460. 

Eligius,  91,  95. 

Elliot,  230. 

Elocution,  344,  443,  470,  473. 

Embury,  221. 

Emotionalism,  12,  207,  223. 

Emphasis,  474. 

Enlightenment,  198  ff.,  212. 

Enunciation,  470. 

"Envelope"  method,  419. 

Epictetus,  60. 

Epistles,  57. 

Erasmus,  125,  130,  141. 

Erskine  (E.),  168. 

Erskine  (J.),  223. 

Erskine  (R.),  168. 

Ethical  message,  19. 

Ethicist,  10. 

Ethics,  294,  301  f.,  368,  394  f. 

Eulogy,  77. 

Evangelical  message,  16. 

Evangelicals,  167,  223,  224,  298. 

Evangelisation,  357. 

Evangelist,  316,  336  ff.,  358. 

Evangelistic,  338,  359. 

Evangelists,  211  ff. 

Ewald,  202. 

Experience,  17,  274,  305. 

Experimental  message,  1 8. 

Exposition,  291,  349,  428. 

Expression,  473. 

Extempore  apeaking,  465  ff. 

Eyre,  232. 

Fact,  394. 

Fairbaim,  242,  266,  267. 

Faith,  9,  48,  101,  213,  306. 

FamQiavity,  453. 

Fare],  134. 

Farrar,  262. 

Fasting,  67. 

Fathers,  72  ff. 

Fenelon,  175,  183,  353,  461. 


Fervour,  418. 

Feug^re,  178. 

Figures  (of  speech),  455,  457. 

Fisher,  133,  163,  213,  222. 

FMchier,  175. 

Fletcher,  220. 

Florus  of  Lyons,  99. 

Forsyth,  278,  286,  318. 

Fox,  160. 

Francis,  107. 

Francke,  187,  192  f.,  198. 

Freedom,  10. 

Friars,  105  ff. 

Fuller  (A.),  231. 

Fuller  (T.),  155. 

Funeral,  377. 

Geiler,  124. 

George  Eliot,  122,  44>>. 

Gerson,  123. 

Gesture,  476. 

Gillie,  322. 

Gilmour,  236. 

Goodwin,  157. 

Gospels,  26. 

Gottsched,  201,  353. 

Grace,  31  f.,  317. 

Gray,  373. 

Green,  260, 

Gregory  (the  Great),  88,  93,  97,  103. 

Gregory  (Nazianzen),  76. 

Gregory  (Nyssa),  78. 

Grindal,  148. 

Guibert,  113. 

Guthrie,  250. 

Hafeli,  204. 

Hahn,  196. 

Haime,  221. 

Haldane,  227. 

Hall  (J.),  150. 

Hall  (R.),  225. 

Hamann,  198,  204. 

Hannington,  238. 

Happiness,  418. 

Harms,  210. 

Harris,  221. 

Hatch,  61  ff.,  66. 

Haweis,  282. 

Haymo,  98. 

Hearers,  64,  155. 

Hebrews,  57. 

Heck,  221. 

Hegel,  410,  423. 

Henry  of  Lansenstein,  124.    , 

Henry  (M.),  210. 

Herberger,  146. 

Herder,  202,  204  ff. 

Heresy,  106. 


486 


INDEX 


Hering,  58,  102,  116,  141,  143,  161, 

171,  172,  179,  187,  190,  199,  200. 
Herkless,  106,  108. 
Hen'mann,  4. 
Hildebrand,  100. 
Hill(R.),  220. 
Hippolytus,  68. 
Historical  method,  289  f. 
History,   9,   22,   55,  205,  295,  32:; 

366. 
Hofacker,  210. 
Home,  375. 
Homiletics,  23,  79,  86,  88,  112,  124, 

130,  135,  141,  190,  199,  208,  3r.l. 
Homiliarium,  97. 
Homily,  58,  64,  66,  80,  89,  95,  99, 

129,  147,  185. 
Honorius,  98. 
Honour,  415. 
Hooker,  9,  148. 
Hope,  9. 
Home,  68,  75,  121,  140,  147,   154, 

211,  216  f.,  232  ff.,  269. 
Hort,  48,  50. 
Horton,  281. 
Howard,  211. 
Howe,  200. 
Hoyt,  246,  333. 
Hubert  de  Romanis,  112. 
Hughes,  268. 
Hugo  (St.  Victor),  105. 
Hume,  200,  353. 
Humour,  416. 
Humphreys,  220. 
Huss,  120. 
Huxley,  20. 
Hymns,  319, 
Hyperius,  142,  144. 
Hypocrisy,  310. 

Ideals,  395. 
Ideas,  395. 

Illustrations,  420,  456. 
Imagery,  455. 
Imagination,  305,  455,  457. 
Imitation,  448. 
Immortality,  10. 
Improprieties,  451. 
Inconsistency,  313. 
Induction,  386,  407, 
Indulgences,  120. 
Inflection,  475. 
Innea  (Taylor),  136. 
Inspiration,  3,  206. 
Instances,  397. 
Intellectualism,  12. 
Interest,  345,  365,  453. 
Interpretation,  381. 
Intimacy,  453. 


Introduction,  427. 
Invention,  344,  393. 
Irenaeus,  90. 
Irony,  418. 
Irving  (K),  227. 
Islam,  23,  107. 

Jackson,  400. 

Jacobi,  198. 

James,  26,  57. 

James,  (W.),  327,  338. 

Jargon,  447. 

Jerome,  71. 

Jerome  (of  Prague),  120. 

Jerusalem  (J.  F.  W.),  199. 

John  (Gospel),  27. 

John(l  Ep.),  57. 

John  (Griffith),  236. 

Jones  (M.),  52. 

Journalese,  447. 

Jowett,  314,  384,  420,  425,  431,  446. 

Judgment,  397  f. 

Judson,  235. 

Justification,  131,  149. 

Justin  Martyr,  65,  69. 

Kant,  10,  13,  204,  353,  411. 

Kelman,  270. 

Ker,  58,  91,  111,  114,  124,  128,  143, 

145,  146,  187,  192,  196,   199,  200, 

202,  208,  210,  250. 
Kingdom  (of  God),  2,  6. 
Knowling,  53. 

Knox,  1,  129,  135,  136  f.,  224. 
Krummacher,  186,  210. 
Kurtz,  100. 

Labadie,  188. 

Lanfranc,  100. 

Language,  446. 

Latimer,  139,  147,  148. 

Latitudinarians,  161,  164. 

Lavater,  197,  204. 

Law(E.),  52. 

Law  (W.),  115. 

Lawes,  237. 

Lay  preaching,  220. 

Lebuin,  93. 

Lecky,  217. 

Lecture,  11,  348,  355. 

Legge,  236. 

Leo  the  Great,  8b. 

Lessons,  319. 

Liddon,  245. 

Lightfoot,  66. 

Liuck,  132. 

Lindsay,  128,  136. 

Literature,  336,  367,  443. 

Liturgy,  32i. 


INDEX 


487 


Livingstone,  239. 

Logic,  295,  434,  467. 

Lollards,  118. 

Lucian,  61. 

Lucidity,  450. 

Luther,  14,  84,  102,  116,  120,  127, 

134,  187,  203. 
Ltitkemann,  146. 

Macaulay,  234. 

M'Cheyne,  227. 

McOree,  167. 

Macewan,  91. 

McGiflFert,  57. 

M 'Hardy,  123. 

Mackay,  238. 

Maclagan,  224. 

Maelaren,  263. 

Maclaurin,  223. 

Magee,  262. 

Maillard,  125. 

Mariolatry,  101. 

Marriage,  151,  377. 

"Marrow "men,  167,  223. 

Marsham,  232. 

Martin  of  Tours,  90. 

Martineau,  257. 

Martyn,  233. 

Mascaron,  175. 

Massillon,  176,  179. 

Mathesius,  131  f. 

Maxfield,  220. 

Maximus  of  Turin,  88. 

Mediation,  307. 

Mediators,  204  ff. 

Meditation,  420,  468. 

Melanchthon,  142. 

Melville,  137. 

Memorising,  462. 

Menken,  197. 

Menot,  125. 

Meredith,  449. 

Methodists,  212. 

Middle-aged,  362. 

Milne,  235 

Milton,  8. 

Ministry,  154,  158,  169,  375. 

Missions,  90  ff.,  193,  230  tf.,  342. 

Moderates,  167,  169,  200,  223,  298. 

Modulation,  475. 

Moffat  (R.),  239. 

Moffatt{J.),  57,  450. 

Mohammed,  25. 

Montalambert,  93. 

Montanism,  63,  279. 

Moody,  229. 

Movalism,  205. 

Morality,  9,  10,  19,  296. 

Moravians,  196,  213. 


More(H.),  161. 
Morison,  214,  229. 
Morrison,  235. 
Mosheim,  162,  198. 
Motives,  410. 
Movement,  437,  459. 
Midler,  146. 

Mysticism,    17,  101,   105,   115,  145, 
305  ff. 

Narration,  394. 
Naturalness,  452. 
Nature,  366. 
Nebe,  130. 

Neo-Platonism,  11,  101. 
Newlands,  471,  473. 
Newman,  242. 
Newton,  221. 

Nichol,  450,  452,  4.^4,  457. 
Nicholas  of  Clemani^es,  124. 
Niebergall,  835,  410. 
Nietzsche,  333. 
Ninian,  90. 
Nitzsch,  210. 
Nonconformists,  158  S. 
Notebooks,  419. 
Notes,  463. 
Novelty,  30. 

Objectivity,  322  f. 
Obscurantism,  296. 
Oetinger,  195,  198. 
O'Mahony,  174. 
Open-air  preaching,  215,  341. 
Oratorical  standpoint,  436. 
Orators,  171  ff. 
Order,  452. 
Origen,  71,  88. 
Originality,  30. 
Ornament,  456. 
Outline,  464. 

Palladius,  90. 
Palmer,  95. 
Pancratius,  144. 
Panegyric,  133,  175ff. 
Parables,  88. 
Paraclete,  46. 
Parker  (Irene),  166. 
Parker  (J.),  255. 
Parochial  clergy,  96. 
Pascal,  200. 
Paetor,  159,  316,  330  f. 
Paton,  237. 
Patrick,  90. 
Patteson,  237.   _. 


Paul,  1,  2,   25,  47,  52,  55,  63,  84, 

102,  201,  275,  305. 
Paulus  Diacouu:;,  97. 


488 


INDEX 


Peace,  370. 

Peake,  290. 

Peppr,  325,  426. 

Perfection,  152,  213. 

Pericope,  73,  97. 

Perkins,  154. 

Peroration,  441. 

Personality,  8,  11,  292. 

Perspicuity,  451. 

Persuasiveness,  450. 

Peter  (Apostle),  5^. 

Peter  (Hermit),  100. 

Peter  (Revenna),  88. 

Pharisees,  32. 

Philo,  82. 

Philosophy,  9,  10,  59,  161,  303,  325. 

Phonetics,  470. 

Physics,  294. 

Physiologus,  99. 

Pierre  de  Moulin,  172. 

Pietists,  187  ff.,  204,  426. 

Pilgrim  Fathers,  154. 

Pitch,  475. 

Plato,  27,  62. 

Platonists  (Cambridge),  161. 

Playfere,  152. 

Poetry,  185,  449. 

Politics,  374. 

Popularity,  64,  79,  110,  311,  453. 

Porphyry,  59. 

Positivist,  10. 

Postils,  97,  129. 

Power,  33. 

Practice,  2,  5,  6. 

Prayer,  308,  321,  442. 

Preaching,    8,    155,    253,   261,    264, 

269. 
Preparation,  344. 
Priest,  316  ff. 
Production,  344. 
Progress,  438. 
Projection,  473. 
Pronunciation,  472. 
Prophecy,  23,  31,  49,  55,  63,  374. 
Prophet,  278. 
Proverbs,  36. 
Prudence,  296. 

Psychology,  294,  335,  367,  416. 
Pulsford  (J.),  257. 
Pulsford  (W.),  257. 
Puritans,  152  ff. 
Purity  (language),  450. 
Purity  (life),  67. 
Pusey,  88. 

Quakers,  160. 

Questions  (of  the  day),  334. 

Quietism,  183. 

Quiller-Couch,  447,  450,  456,  460. 


Quintilian,  421. 
Quotations,  420,  456. 

Rabanus  Maurus,  98. 

Raguenier,  135. 

Rambach,  199. 

Ramsay,  65. 

Rate,  228. 

Rationalism,  194,  198. 

Reading,  296,  463. 

Readings,  381. 

Reality,  9. 

Reason,  400. 

Reasoning,  400. 

Reasons,  398. 

Rebuke,  418. 

Beductio  ad  absurdum,  409. 

Reformation,  1,  127,  171. 

Regulus,  90. 

Reinbeck,  199. 

Reinhard,  199,  203. 

Religion,  4,  9,  295. 

Renaissance,  121,  133,  176. 

Renderings,  381. 

Resurrection,  26. 

Reuchlin,  130,  141. 

Revelation,  4,  29. 

Reverence,  412. 

Revolution,  211. 

Rhegius,  132. 

Rhetoric,  61,    73,  84,  86,  142,  170, 

184,  351. 
Richard  (St.  Victor),  105. 
Richard  (T.),  236. 
Ridicule,  415. 
Ridley,  139,  147. 
Ringeltaube,  234. 
Ritual,  5,  10. 
Ritschl,  2,  303. 
Robertson  (F.  W.),  251. 
Robertson  (J.),  43. 
Robinson  (C.  H.),  91  tf.,  233  ff. 
Robinson  (J.),  154. 
Rogers  (H.),  162. 
Romola,  122. 
Rose,  211. 
Ross,  227. 
Rough,  136. 
Rufinus,  71. 

Ruskin,  414,  444,  449,  454. 
Rutherford,  145. 
Ryland,  231. 

Sack,  199. 
Sacraments,  2. 
Sage,  296  tf. 
Saint,  309  ff. 
San  day,  43. 
Sarolea,  243  ff. 


INDEX 


489 


Saurin,  173. 

Savonarola,  121.  137. 

Schaff,  51,  56,  58,  66,  70,  71,  82,  84, 

86. 
Schleieruaacher,  207. 
Scholar,  293  If. 
Scholasticism,  100,  105. 
Schott,  353. 
Schupp,  146. 
Schiirer,  51. 
Schweitzer,  300. 
Science,  9,  294,  325. 
Scott  (Walter),  223. 
Scribe,  282  ff. 
Scribes,  29. 
Scriptures,  7,    14,   73,   88,  98,  117, 

129,  134,  189,  205,  282,  346,  379, 

391. 
Scriver,  143. 
Secession,  168. 
Seeley,  43,  154. 
Seer,  304  ff. 
Selbie,  43,  207,  267. 
Semler,  208. 
Sentimentalism,  12. 
Sermon,  2,  73,  80,  88,  99,  102,  348. 
Shakespeare,  156. 
Sheridan,  220. 
Shillito,  330. 

Simplicity,  155,  162,  446,  453,  456. 
Simpson,  13,  83, 150, 151, 161,  164. 
Sin,  401. 
Slang,  451. 
Smith  (G.),  230. 
Smith  (G.  A.),  286. 
Smith  (H.),  155. 
Smith  (J.),  161. 
Snell,  212. 
Social  feeling,  416. 
Social  problem,  334,  373,  401. 
Sociology,  294,  301. 
Socrates,  23. 
Solecisms,  450. 
Somerset,  147. 
Song  of  Songs,  78,  101. 
Sophist,  62,  65,  73. 
Sophistic,  61. 
South,  162. 
Spalding,  202,  205. 
Speculation,  16. 
Speech,  11,  355,  445. 
Spener,  187. 
Spinoza,  115. 
Spirit,  3,  46,  50,  279. 
Spiritualising,  71,  99. 
Spurgeon,  161,  247,  308. 
Stalker,  33,  36,  40,  275,  280,  385. 
Stanley  ^Dean),  159,  245. 
Staupitz,  124. 


Steinhofer,  196. 
Stephen,  64. 
Stephen  (Sir  Jas.),  233. 
Stier,  210. 
Stilling,  197. 
Stevenson,  238. 
Stoicism,  11,  63. 
Stoughton,  227. 
Strength,  454. 
Students,  375. 
Style,  448,  456. 
Subjectivity,  318. 
Subjects,  385,  429. 
Suggestion,  387. 
Surgant,  124. 
Suso,  116. 

Sympathy,  331,  363. 
Synagogue,  51. 
Synoptics,  27. 
Synthesis,  423, 

Taste,  414. 
Tauler,  115,  222. 
Taylor  (Jer.),  150,  156,  162. 
Teacher,  316,  324  ff. 
Teaching,  326  ff.,  355. 
Telford,  221. 
Teller,  204. 
Temperance,  372. 
Temptation,  137. 
Tennyson,  449. 
Tersteegen,  197. 
Tertullian,  70,  82,  83. 
Texts,  14,  282,  378,  425. 
Theme,  429. 
Theology,  302,  394  f. 
Theosophy,  195. 
Theremin,  186,  353. 
Thesis,  429. 
Tholuck,  210. 
Thomasius,  198,  200. 
Thomson,  224. 
Tillotson,  161,  199. 
Tipple,  258. 
Topical  preaching,  349. 
Transitions,  439  f. 
Travers,  148. 
Truth,  8,  817. 

Unction,  417. 
Unity,  363,  425,  455. 
Utilitarianism,  201. 

Van  Oosterzee,  75,  77,  176,  180,  187, 

192,  201,  227. 
Variety,  460. 
Veghe,  124. 
Vices,  80,  97. 
Villari,  123. 


490 


INDEX 


Vinet,  171,  178,  852,  365,  378,  468, 

Virtues,  80,  97. 

Vooation,  276. 

Voice,  469  ff. 

Volition,  12. 

Voltaire,  162,  200,  211. 

Vulgarisms,  472. 

Wace,  128. 

Waldenses,  108. 

Walker,  91,  224,  225. 

Ward,  365. 

Wardlaw,  229. 

Water,  68,  78. 

Watson,  334,  888,  393. 

Watts,  166. 

Webb,  221. 

Weigel,  145. 

Wendt,  34,  37,  38,  41. 

Werner  of  Ellerbach,  98. 

Wesley  (C),  212,  220. 

Wesley     (J.),     102,     115,     212  fiF., 

230. 
Whately,  243. 


Whichcote,  161. 
Whitefield,  214,  222.  227. 
Wilberforoe,  211,  222,  226. 
Wilfiitli,  93. 
Wilks,  232. 
Williams,  233. 
Winthrop,  153. 
Wisdom,  296. 
Wishart,  136. 
WolflF,  198,  201. 
Workmann,  117. 
Worship,  2,  4,  7,  65,  317. 
Wyclif,  116. 

Xavier,  230. 
Xenophsn,  27. 

Young  men,  361. 
Young  women,  862. 

Zinzendorf,  195  f.,  212. 
ZoUikofer,  202. 
Zoroastrianism,  23. 
Zwingli,  133. 


N.B. — The  repeated  references  in  the  footnotes  to  such  books  as  Hering. 
etc.,  have  not  beeu  indexed,  but  ouly  the  references  in  the  text  itself. 


